Crossin' the Line
by Anakin's Girl 4eva
Summary: Boss Hogg never meant to hurt the Duke Boys, but when one of his money makin' schemes goes horribly wrong, one of the Good Ol' Boys ends up in Tri County, suffering injuries that will change his life...COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Howdy y'all. This is my first Dukes of Hazzard fic. I hope you like it and that you R and R. :-)_

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_Welcome to a typical day in Hazzard County. The air is mighty fine, the sky is sunny…and the Dixie horn of the General Lee is ringing through these parts of the woods like church bells on a Sunday morning. Y'all see there? That orange car is the General Lee, some folks say it's the greatest piece of machinery they ever did see run these ragged dirt roads, and others say it's all down to the driver. Then again, it's mainly the pretty young gals that say that. And I think y'all about to see why._

_**Y'see that guy behind the wheel? That there is Beauregard Duke, but don't y'all ever let him hear you call him that, or you'll be on the receiving end of his fist. No, he likes to be called…**_

"BO! Get your eyes back on that damn road!"

**_There, couldn't have said it better myself. That, as far as you're concerned, is Bo Duke. And the dark stranger next to him, that there's Luke Duke, his closer-than-a-brother cousin. Now I tell ya'll, it is very rare that them Duke Boys are split from each other. But it don't even matter when they are, 'cause they still manage to slip in and out of trouble quicker than a polecat covered in grease._**

"Ah look, its no problem. Y'all know I know these roads like the back of my hand. I could run this route blindfolded. And anyhow, with the General, there ain't no obstacle that we can't get through. Right General?"

Bo leant over and patted the dashboard of the car, smiling as he felt the wind whip through his hair and the smell of the engine running greeted his senses. Luke watched with fond amusement. The General was half his car too, seeing as they gone and built it together from the wheels up, but the way Bo treated it and drove it always made Luke wonder whether it still was. He turned round in his seat as a siren blared in his ears, and grinned as the sheriff's car pulled out behind them.

_**That's right y'all, the sheriff. Roscoe. Not the sharpest tool in the shed, but still hell bent on locking our boys up for something that they didn't do. O'course, it's very rare that he ever catches them; let's see how the boys decide to outsmart him today shall we?**_

"Hey Bo, looks like ol' Roscoe's got a bone to pick with us."

"Cuz, he always has a something to pick with us, but I don't feel like sitting around this time to find out why."

"Dang right, step on it."

With that, Bo's foot stamped hard on the accelerator, sending the General surging forward, whipping up a cloud of dust as its wheel's spun on the dirt road. Luke looked back to see Roscoe nearly out of sight already. He had to hand it to Bo, when he wanted to make a getaway, he sure made one. He laughed as Bo used the twisting corners to disorientate the sheriff, and then somehow managed to spin the general to end up right behind the police car.

"Now where'd y'all learn to do that?"

"I didn't learn, just went right ahead and did it."

"So how'd you know it was gonna work if you ain't never done it before?"

"I guessed."

Bo flashed a boyish grin at his elder cousin, laughing as Luke shook his head in disbelief, grinning almost as wildly as Bo himself.

"Y'all know one day you're fool crazy stunts are gonna get you into a whole heap o'trouble. I think you been spendin' a little too much time with Cooter."

"I know, but we gotta keep thinking up something's to keep Roscoe on his toes, or it'll just get boring for him."

"True but...Bo look out!"

Luke braced himself as Roscoe turned his car sharply to block the road ahead, but Bo just grinned at, what he considered to be, a challenge.

"Looks like Roscoe got himself a new IQ, well, let's see how he handles this."

Luke watched as Bo pulled the General sharply to the left, gunning towards a pile of planks and dirt, creating a makeshift ramp. He grinned at his younger cousin, as the General's speed increased and sure enough, the bright orange car flew up the ramp, launching itself off the ground. Bo hit the horn, sending the Dixie tune running through the ears of the infuriated Sheriff on the ground below, accompanied by the cocky boy's call of 'YYEEEEE HAAAAWWWW!"

The boy's jerked as the General landed with a solid thump back on the dirt roads, and Bo wasted no time in looking back and laughing along with Luke, as the image of Roscoe throwing his hat to the ground and cursing them soon faded away in a cloud of dust.

"Oh, Luke that just never gets old. I can't believe he didn't spot that mound."

"I think he did and was trying to use it as a road block. He should have known the General could jump it."

"You know, I think after all this time he still underestimates me and the General's abilities."

"Your abilities! Hey, y'all just remember who taught you everything you know about driving."

Bo laughed as they pulled up at Duke Farm, greeting Uncle Jessie and their beautiful cousin, Daisy Duke, as they slid out the windows of the car and headed on inside.

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Roscoe knocked gingerly on the door to Boss Hogg's office before stepping quickly inside as an angry bellow beckoned him into the room. He stepped up, trembling like a leaf, to the front desk, glancing at the angry man sat before him.

"Y'all wanted to see me Boss."

_**Now pay attention y'all cause this is real important. That there is J.D.Hogg, owner of practically everything in Hazzard County, and most likely behind 90 percent of the crime that occurs here too. He has a long time grudge against the Duke family, and is usually the one behind Roscoe's pea-brained ideas to catch them in a stitch up.**_

"Yeah I wanted to see ya. What happened earlier today! The plan was set up real nice for y'all to nab them Duke Boys and y'all still manage to lose em! Now Lulu has gone invited them to my party tonight."

"I'm sorry Boss, but that Duke Boy is quicker in the car than you is at lunchtime!"

Boss glared at the trembling sheriff before him, enjoying the power that he had over the smaller people…it was the bigger people he had to worry about.

"Listen you idiot! I got Cletus and Ronny comin' in from Atlanta tonight to do that job for me, so you better make sure that the Duke clan are all at the party. If anything goes wrong, there'll be a new head on the wall of the Boar's Nest tomorro'."

"Y...y…yes sir. Now don't y'all worry, they'll be there, you can count on me."

Boss watched as Roscoe fled the office, followed by his ever trusty hound Flash. He looked down at the map of Hazzard laid out on his desk, a slimy grin coming over his face as he thought of the plan.

"Ooo, once I have Jesse's farm and those good for nothing nephews of his outta the way, there'll be nothing to stop me building on that land and I'll be rich."

_**Now, I don't know bout you, but that don't sound too good to me. Y'all better keep tunin' in and see what's goin' on. **_


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Howdy y'all, and wow 11 reveiws already! You're doing far better than the star wars readers at the moment. All revewis are greatly appriciated, its nice to know that people are reading these, it makes it all seem worthwhile, so thanks so much everyone and heres the next chappie for you. :-)**

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"Awww, come on now Daisy, y'all been in there for a good half hour now."

"Well I'm sorry Luke but I gotta look good for ol' Boss Hogg's party tonight or he's bound to fire me."

"Daisy y'all know that would never happen. You're the only reason most of them guys go in the Boars Nest."

"Luke, I ain't riskin' it. Now y'all are just gonna have to wait."

Luke sighed and headed downstairs where he found Bo, crashed out on the lounge chair by the fire. He smiled and walked over to him, clappin' a friendly hand gently on his shoulder.

"Hey Cousin, you better get your tail movin' or you're not gonna be ready for the party."

Bo looked groggily up, rubbing his eyes before swiftly moving to the top of his head.

"Ah Luke, I'm exhausted and I got a thumpin' headache, I think I dang gone and smacked my head in the General when we did the jump."

"You sure you ain't got concussion?"

"Nah, I'm alright, guess I'm just beat as well from the big race last Saturday."

"Well, y'all want me to hang back here with ya?"

"It's fine, you go have a good time with Daisy and Uncle Jessie…oh and give Boss a 'Happy Birthday' from me will ya?"

"What, you mean a good ol' Bo punch up with 3 or 4 guys who made sleazy comments about Daisy?"

"Y'all know me so well."

"Come on Luke, Bo. We gotta git a move on or Boss'll blow his top off if we're late."

**_Now that's Uncle Jesse, the Duke Clan patriarch, the head of the family. His word is law to Luke, Bo and Daisy, but the orders are more carried out 'cause of love and respect than 'cause they actually have to._**

Luke smiled as Uncle Jesse's voice rang down the hallway and Bo grimaced at the loud noise, instantly putting his hand to his forehead. Luke chuckled gently and patted his cousin's shoulder again, pressing him back down into the comfy chair as Bo tried half heartedly to get to his feet.

"It's alright Bo, I'll explain to Uncle Jesse on the way. You rest up or we'll have no driver for the next race."

"Oh so that's the only reason your so concerned."

"O'course, what other reason would there be?"

Bo laughed softly before flashing a smile at his older cousin, he knew what Luke's cheerful banter really meant, he never needed telling.

"Thanks Luke."

"No problem, y'all take care. I'll take Dixie so you can have the General if you change your mind or you need to come to us for something."

"Alright, but be careful. Y'all know Daisy's car ain't so good at out-runnin' Rosco as the General, 'specially with you behind the wheel."

Luke laughed, hollering a farewell to Bo as he ushered Daisy out the door to Dixie where Uncle Jesse was waiting. Bo settled back in the chair, grinning at his ability to still be able to pull off the old sick trip with Luke.

O'course, he hated lying to his family, and he knew he'd be in a whole heap of trouble if they found out he was lying. But he just couldn't face Boss that night, he hated having to go to the Boars nest when Boss was there because he nearly always lost his temper and knocked a few guys cold before the night was out, earning himself and Luke a night in Hazzard's Jail Cells and Uncle Jesse a varying amount of money to bail them out. No, he decided that it was less expensive to the family if he just stayed relaxing on the farm that night.

**_Ya see, that's what Bo thinks. I'm just thinkin' about what Boss Hogg said about the Dukes bein' away from the farm…suddenly Bo's idea don't seem too good do it? Seems like Daisy's none too happy either._**

"Ah gee Luke, I hope Bo'll be alright. I mean one of us should've stayed behind to make sure he ain't got concussion."

"Daisy, he'll be fine. Bo's got a harder head than any of us here, he's more beat from racing last Saturday than anythin'."

Luke pulled Dixie sharply into the turn that led to the Boar's Nest, making a mental note to adjust some of the suspension settings when he got some time. He helped Daisy out of the car, laughing as several wolf-whistles came her way.

They had to be new-comers, everyone in Hazzard County knew that you just don't wolf-whistle or stare at Daisy Duke. 9 times out of 10, if y'all did, you either get a good kicking from the feisty female herself, or you find yourself being thrown against a wall or out the General's windows by Bo and Luke.

"Y'all want me to get 'em Daisy?"

"Luke, there'll be no clobberin' or rough-housin from either of y'all tonight. I'm sure Daisy can put up with it for one day. Y'all know J.D will take any excuse he can git to lock you up, just keep your heads low and try and enjoy it."

"Yes Uncle Jesse."

The trio headed inside, Daisy smiling her usual smile as the cheers greeted her arrival. Practically everyone in Hazzard County knew the Dukes and respected their largely steadfast ways and unfaltering loyalty to a friend. If you went to a Duke with a problem, at least one of 'em would be guaranteed to help ya out. And of course, if the Dukes needed help, there wouldn't be hardly anyone who wouldn't jump at the chance to help them in return.

"Hey Luke, you and Bo racin' Saturday?"

"You bet, though it might just be me. Bo ain't feelin' great at the moment."

Luke headed over with Uncle Jesse and Daisy to the bar, leaning on it as he checked out the beautiful girls walking past. When he thought about it, he was partly glad Bo wasn't here, usually Bo scooped a large amount of the girls within a few seconds of him stepping through the door.

"Hey Sugar, y'all lookin' a bit lonely. Wanna Dance?"

Luke turned to his right to see a beautiful young lady, flaming red hair and dark green eyes, gazing back at him.

"Well now, that all depends how far y'all will go to get me to dance with you."

"I ain't takin' no for an answer, come on."

_**So while Luke's off dancin' with girls, Bo's sittin' at home like a sittin' duck. Friends, I don't like the looks of how I think this is gonna turn out. This would be a really inconvenient time to go the fridge, so stick around.**_


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Howdy again, here's another update for y'all. Another fantastic 10 reveiws! My aim is to try and beat my 130 reveiws on one of my star wars stories under 26 chapters which is how long the sw story is. Think y'all can do it? ;-) I know you can. Hope you enjoy this.**

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Bo stirred as he heard voices coming from outside and instantly jumped to his feet when he didn't recognize them. He knelt down behind the counter as he heard the footsteps of two people walk past the window of the kitchen.

"Yeah, you know our orders, blow the barn and trash the house."

"And make it look like the Dukes gone and done it theirselves."

"That way Boss don't pay no insurance money, the Dukes are bankrupt and he gets the land while we walk away free with the money from Boss."

**_Now, what kind of criminal talks about their plan out loud at the scene of the crime? The unsuspectin' ones that's who, and the ones who don't like it when things don't go their way…_**

Bo instantly dove over to the wall and grabbed Luke's Bow and Dynamite arrows from the hook, remembering that he had earlier left his in the General. Seeing that the two fella's were already headed for the barn, he slipped out the back door and round to behind the General where it was parked, with a nice clear shot at the tree in front of the barn.

He knew he was taking a risk by aiming at something that was so close, but he had to do something to stop them. He silently pulled the string of the bow back, the hiss of the lit dynamite fuse reminding him that he didn't have a lot of time to aim. With a sucked in breath, he closed his eyes and let go of the string.

_**Y'all better pray that Bo's a good a shot as he brags about, or Boss' plan may work out too well.**_

The arrow connected with the base of the tree, blowing it to smithereens. Bo watched as the two men ducked out of the way of the falling pieces of timber before having to duck down himself. When he could finally pop his head up to have a look again, the two men had disappeared. He gently laid Luke's bow on the ground and reached for the CB tucked under the general's dash.

Suddenly, he felt two strong hands clasp his shoulders and drag him out of the car, throwing him against one of the huge tree trunks. Bo arched in pain, before sliding winded to the ground. He looked up as two shadows fell across his lap, and saw the two men who had just been standing in front of the barn just minutes before. He grimaced as they pulled him back to his feet, before roughly dragging him indoors and sitting him firmly on a seat.

"Now what y'all have to bring me in here for? It's a lovely day outside."

"Can it ploughboy, what's your name?"

"Who's askin'?"

He grimaced as a sharp backhand lashed across the back of his head.

"Hey come on now that ain't very nice. I was only tryin' to be friendly."

"Well maybe we'll be a little more friendly as soon as you tell us your name."

"It's Bo…Bo Duke."

"Bo Duke? Hey, ain't that the guy who ran you off the road in the race last Saturday?"

"Oh yeah, I thought I recognized that orange car outside."

**_Now, what y'all seem to forget, is that Bo is the master at Shuckin' and jivin'. Heck, he's shucked Jesse so many times even ol' Boss Hogg couldn't keep track. While those two guys are talkin about the race, Bo ain't really just noddin along, he's got a plan…or at least y'all better hope he does._**

Bo leapt out of the seat, elbowing the guy to his left, and smashing the back of his head into the guy's nose behind him. He felt the hands drop away from his shoulders and instantly dropped to the floor, rolling under the table to appear out the other side. He grinned and laughed in satisfaction when he saw crimson liquid dripping through the taller guy's hands, and the other bent double.

"Now I'd just love to have a tea party with y'all, but I just gotta warn my cousin and about half of Hazzard what y'all plan to do."

With that, Bo turned to the back door, fully intent on running to the General to raise Hazzard County on the CB. Well, that was until he heard the click of a gun being cocked, and a raspy voice stopped him dead.

"You take one more step towards that car and you wont be around to see your cousin again."

Bo's hands went instantly above his head, feeling the gut sickening realization that he had never faced two guys with guns on his own before, he had always had Luke by his side. He felt the barrel press into the back of his neck and shuddered gently at the cold chill that ran down his spine.

"Now walk forward slowly to that there tree you decided to blow."

Bo complied, desperately trying to think of someway that he could still get away. He knew however, that it would be hopeless to even try. Luke was always the brains of this type of getaway; he just drove them out of trouble.

"Now, just for that, you're goin' to watch while we torch this place before we finish you off."

Bo was forced to his knees, the gun still pressing hard into his neck, and was made to watch as the man with the broken nose took up Luke's bow and dynamite arrow, and fired at a can of petrol sat just outside the door. He cried out as the barn was quickly engulfed by flames, receiving a hard blow to the back of his head.

He fell forward onto his hands, blinking back tears of anger as the bright flames licked hungrily at the wood. He heard the cackling laughter of the men behind him, and his quick temper instantly flared. In an instant, his hand had swung round and bashed the gun away from his neck. Next, his boot clad foot connected with the shins of the startled man, and his other fist again targeted the face of the bloodied man.

On seeing them double over again, he sped towards the General, quickly sliding through the window and starting up the engine. With one last look at the burning barn, his foot found the accelerator and the General sped down the road, whipping up dust as the wheels span in the dirt.

When he was well away from the farm, he changed his course and sped in the direction of the Boar's Nest, while hurriedly catching hold of the CB. He tuned the frequency, trying to reach the one that connected to Dixie, when he heard the sound of Boss Hogg's voice. Keeping his eyes on the road, he listened in.

"Now what d'ya think your doin' calling me here! Y'all know what I told ya!"

"Yeah Boss, but this is an emergency. Someone caught us attackin' the place."

"Who? Y'all know, I don't care, just make sure you find them and keep them hushed. I don't care what it takes, make sure they ain't gonna talk!"

"Will do Boss, we're in pursuit now and don't worry bout the insurance money. We done hit the barn with one of their arrows, there ain't no way they can pin it on us."

"You better hope not for your own sakes."

"Yes Sir."

Bo brought the General to a screeching halt. He sat, dumbfounded, at the wheel for a while. Boss had been behind the attack…Uncle Jesse thought there was something suspicious about Boss Hogg inviting them to his party, and now he could see why. Boss never did anything for the Dukes unless there was something in it for him. The party was a distraction, and Bo shuddered to think what could have happened had he not decided to stay on the farm.

Suddenly, gun shots sounded behind him, and Bo turned to see a car speeding towards him, a familiar blood-soaked man hanging out the window firing at him. He quickly put the General into gear and tore down the dusty road, getting a horrible feeling that he was very much alone.

**_Now didn't I say Bo being home alone was a bad idea? I sure hope he has a way to get out of this one, or this may be the very first time you see one of the Duke Boys actually get hurt...or maybe even killed. Y'all stick around now, ya hear? _**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Thanks for the awsome reveiws everybody who has reveiwed. Some people have disappeared so I only got 7 reveiwes for the last chapter but just having 7 keeps me happy seein' as I know people are still reading and liking. Hope you all enjoy this chapter. :-)**

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Daisy crept away from the door to Boss Hogg's office and headed back to serve behind the bar, smiling at all the guys who continued to drunkenly hit on her. She quickly scanned the crowd for any signs of her cousin or uncle.

She finally spotted Uncle Jesse speaking with Enos on the far side of the room and she shook her head when she saw that Luke was still dancing with that young girl who had grabbed him nearly an hour before. Eventually, she was able to catch his eye with a concerned look his way, and he instantly pulled away from the girl and headed over to Daisy who quickly pulled him into the storage room.

"Well I'm glad I could finally tear you away from her! I been tryin' to get your attention for near 20 minutes now!"

"Well y'all know it ain't difficult for ya to attract attention. You should've just done what y'all usually do."

"Real funny Luke. Now listen, I'm worried. I just overheard Boss Hogg on the CB, and there is something goin' on that I think we should know about."

"Well what?"

"I don't know, I only heard small snippets with all the noise those guys are makin'. He was sayin' something about Insurance money and blowing things up."

Luke frowned, trying to draw any possible conclusions from the facts Daisy had told him. He knew one thing; that Boss Hogg was defiantly up to one of his money making schemes again. The only problem was finding out what he was doing.

"Well without further clues I don't know what he's talkin' about. You should try listenin' in again next time he goes into the back room, and I'll try and raise Bo and see if he's noticed anythin' strange, though he'll probably be asleep."

"Alright, y'all use the Dixie CB to raise Bo and I'll talk to Uncle Jesse while I wait for Boss to go back in his office."

Luke quickly left the back room, taking a route through the crowds of people that managed to allow him to avoid Boss and Enos, whose attention was being diverted by Daisy walking across the room. He slid through the crowd easily and reached the door when he felt a hand clap itself on his shoulder. He turned round to see Rosco looking at him inquisitively.

"W…why you goin' out there?"

In an instant, Luke was thinking up some lie about why he needed to use the CB, when he realized that all he needed to do was tell the truth. He hadn't and wasn't planning on doing anything wrong, so why shouldn't he tell the sheriff the truth?

"I need to raise Bo on the CB in Dixie. He stayed behind tonight 'cause he want feelin' too good, just want to check he's alright is all."

Luke frowned as Rosco's expression quickly turned into one of concern and horror. He watched as Rosco tried to calm himself, rocking slightly back and forth on his heels, his thumbs hooked through his belt loops.

"Ya mean...uh…Bo ain't here?"

"Nope, like I said he didn't feel too good…why?"

"Oh…urm…I...uh…you cant go out to the Dixie."

"Why not Rosco? What's goin' on?"

But he never got to hear the reply as he was called by Daisy, sounding quite panicked. He gave a last disapproving stare at Rosco before hurrying over to find Daisy nearly in tears with Enos looking ashamedly at his feet. Uncle Jesse looked infuriated and Luke saw his eyes lock on Boss Hogg.

"What's…?"

"Did y'all get through to Bo?" Jesse growled

"Well no, Rosco wouldn't let me out to Dixie, he knows something' about all this. He got real shifty when I asked him why."

"We need to contact Bo. Boss's party is just a distraction to git us away from the farm so he could demolish it and make it look like we gone and done it ourselves."

"But how is that possible! Everyone in town is up here 'cept Cooter cause he's workin' late."

Enos looked up from the floor when Uncle Jesse gave no answer and looked fearfully at Luke, before giving him an explanation.

"The guys he hired ain't from Hazzard Luke; they're the thugs from Atlanta, the ones that keep goin' missing. I found the plans on his desk this mornin'. I'm real sorry Luke, Rosco wouldn't let me outta his sight all day so I couldn't come warn ya."

Luke had heard the awful tales of the Atlanta thugs on the news and the mysterious accidents and disappearances that went with them. He quickly put his arm round Daisy as soft tears fell silently down her cheeks, the realization of what may be happening on the farm starting to sink into his mind.

For a while, no one spoke, the only noise they could hear was the clapping, hollering and jeering of the crowd over the jolly music. As soon as Luke could find his voice again he spoke hurriedly.

"Well what are we waiting for, Bo to show up here in a body bag?"

"Luke!"

"Well come on, the longer we spend here the more likely it is that he's goin' to be hurt. If he is in trouble ain't we better find out and quick!"

"You're right, we better. Right, here's what we're gonna do."

Jesse gathered the three people around him, Enos included, and got to work.

**While their tryin' to figure out a plan to get to the farm, Bo's still tryin' to shake those two thugs off his tail.**

Bo spun the General round to face the car head on as he spotted the route he was looking for. He grinned as the other car swerved out of his way, leaving him clear to take the road he needed.

"Well them boys ain't from round here. They'd know not to let me down here in a chase if they were."

Putting his foot down harder as he saw the men spin their car to follow him, Bo grinned as he saw the destination he was bound for. Old Mill Bridge, Bo's favourite jumping spot. The General had made the jump so many times before; it was like second nature to Bo to take him over it in a chase seeing as there weren't many other cars that could make it.

Bo whooped and thumped the General's horn as it left the ramp and flew through the air. However, that whoop soon turned into a panic filled yell as Bo recognized the figures of two large diggers and a dirt pile right where the General would be landing. Bo braced himself inside the car, and squeezed his eyes shut.

The General's front end clipped one of the diggers, sending it spinning as it landed. It hit the dirt mound side on, and rolled over and over until it finally came to a halt against a tree, its wheels firmly on the ground, the driver's door connecting solidly with the hefty trunk.

The two men on the other side of the bridge grinned in satisfaction when no one got out of the car.

"Well I can be pretty sure that boy ain't gonna be tellin' no one nothin'."

"Dang right, no one could have survived somthin' like that."

Laughing, the two men retreated back to their cars and headed towards the Boar's Nest, leaving the General in a smoking heap.

**_Didn't I say that if this carried on this might be the first time you see one of the Duke Boys die? I figure the only way he's getting' back to town is in a big wooden box. I don't know if I can bear to watch the next part._**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Ya know, you guys are the best! I got 12 reveiws for the last chapter! I love ya all and so, as a thank you, I decided to post this earlier than I planned. Just a quick note, a couple of people reveiwed that my Balladeer comments are a little off, all I can say is I'm real sorry but I dont come from that part of America, I live in the Uk, and so am writing it based on the kind of speakI hear in the show of Dukes of Hazzard. Hope you all enjoy this, and i'll say more at the bottom in a minute...**

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All the men whooped and laughed as Daisy danced on a table, attracting the attention of Enos and Boss Hogg, and occasionally Rosco. Luke watched the door from the sidelines, waiting for the signal. He chuckled slightly as he thought of how comical the situation was, all this just to sneak out to the Dixie.

He watched as Daisy kicked a guy through a table, and before long, Boss's cry of 'Rosco!' drew the sheriff away from his post. Luke seized the opportunity and slipped quietly through the door, managing to duck airborne beer glasses on the way.

He breathed in the cool night air, forgetting for a moment where he was and why. After spending so long in the Marines, he loved the freedom that the open air brought him. He quickly darted through the cars and jumped into Dixie, wrenching the handset into his grip.

"This is Lost Sheep One to Lost Sheep Two, Cousin you got your ears on?"

Luke waited, knowing that if Bo was asleep it would take him a while to register who was talking and where from.

"Bo come on, if y'all out there answer me, this is an emergency."

Now the fear started to creep into Luke's stomach when he still got no reply. He flipped the frequency to the Hazzard Net, hoping that someone was out there and not everyone was here at the party.

"This is Luke Duke callin' the Hazzard Net, anyone got their ears on?"

"Breaker One, Breaker One, I may be crazy but I ain't dumb. This is Crazy Cooter here Luke and boy am I glad you raised me, come back."

"Why's that Cooter?"

"Well I been tryin' to find y'all for a while. I'm headin' up to your place now, there's a whole load of smoke pourin' out from somewhere."

"Have you tried raisin' Bo on the CB at the farm?"

"No, I thought he'd be with you."

"He ain't. Listen Cooter, don't raise Bo yet, we got a feelin' here that Boss is up to somethin' and Bo may be in trouble. If he is still there, we don't wanna attract attention to the fact we know somethin's up."

"Alright, y'all still want me to head on up there?"

"Yeah Cooter, we'll go together. Meet us on Possum Road in a couple o' minutes."

"Ten four Luke, I'm gone."

Luke's heart thumped painfully against his ribs as he placed the CB back on the hook. If the farm had been attacked, then there was a good chance they could get there in time to save it, and do any repairs they needed to over the weeks, but what really mattered was where Bo was.

He was sure as hell Bo wouldn't sit around and let whoever had attacked get away with it, no matter how big or mean lookin' they were; 'specially if he lost his temper.

**For those of y'all who don't know Bo as well as Luke does, that young boy has a mighty quick temper and tends to land him in a lot of trouble….as we's just found out.**

Luke ran back into the Boar's Nest, collaring his family and explaining the situation. When he finished, Jesse's face looked paler than a ghost, but his eyes were blazing with fury. Daisy too looked infuriated and they all locked their gaze with Boss Hogg, who laughed and joked along with Rosco.

"I'm gonna kill him….if anything's happened to Bo I swear I'll…"

"Luke you watch your language. The good lord will bring us justice, right now we gotta concentrate on gettin' to the farm and makin' sure Bo ain't hurt."

"Well gees Jesse, that don't sound like a good idea. What if those thugs are still there?"

They all turned to see Enos standing worriedly behind them.

"I feel bad enough that I couldn't tell y'all sooner about what I found, I'd feel better 'bout it if y'all let me come along. Then I can be on your side if this thing goes to court."

"Alright Enos, we need to get out of here. You follow us in your squad car."

A quick nod from everyone set the plan in motion, sending Rosco and Boss such angry glares as they passed that neither of them dared to try and stop them.

**Now ain't it typical that when Bo needs help the most, theys all lookin' in the wrong place! **

All four vehicles pulled up at the farm almost 5 minutes later and skidded to a halt. Luke, Daisy, Jesse, Cooter and Enos all stepped out hurriedly, and stopped in their tracks when the barn came into their view. There was practically nothing left, just a pile of timber and hay, burning itself to the ground at a rapid rate. Daisy leant into Cooter, who wrapped comforting arms around her, Jesse and Enos just quietly looking stunned at how low Boss and sunk.

Luke however, was across to the house in an instant when he realized that the General was gone. He flung open the front door and stepped inside, stopping as soon as he saw the mess. The tables and chairs were overturned and broken, china smashed on the sides but more alarmingly….blood….on the floor and blood handprints on the sides.

He heard the others rush in too but didn't move an inch, hearing the gasps that his throat just wouldn't let him express. Within seconds he had bolted back to Dixie and had started up the engine and was about to speed off, when Daisy jumped in the passenger seat next to him and buckled up, and he saw Cooter leap back into his truck. He smiled thankfully at Daisy, who rested her head on his shoulder, as he turned the wheel sharply, and sped off into the night.

**Don't y'all worry now; if Luke's lookin' for Bo, it shouldn't be too long 'afore they find him…that is if he ain't already too late.****

* * *

**

A/N 2: ((lol)) Yeah so, please dont hurt me! I know Bo ain't in this chapter but there's a good reason for that -ducks flying beer glasses- alright alright, I promise Bo will be in the next chapter. If you all kill me I wont have a chance to and you will never know will ya. Anyway, please R&R as spectacularly as you have and keep on smilin' :-)


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Howdy again and wow, another 11 reveiws! You guys are fantastic. Just to let you all know, I've written ahead and have all the chapters up to chapter 12 planned out, so the more reveiws you get, the more I am spurred to update quicker knowing that you like it and that I have the chapters burning a hole in my...urm...computer. :-p **

**Well, as I promised, the return of Bo is here I just hope you all like what you read. Please keep R&R as spectacularly as you are, it means a lot to me. :-)**

* * *

"Luke….Luke…"

Bo groggily came back to consciousness, crying out in pain as he tried to move. He could feel blood trickling down his face and found that he couldn't move his legs or his left arm. He managed to wiggle the fingers of his right hand, which was pinned against his middle by the steering wheel. He found it increasingly difficult to breathe; wincing in pain everytime he took a breath. He called out his cousin's name again, in the hopes that he was around somewhere; he usually was when he was in pain.

His vision was already starting to swim again, as the pain that he was feeling grew stronger, sending warm tears spilling down his cheeks when no loving arms wrapped round his waist and no comforting words soothed him back to sleep.

There was nothing he could do, the General was dead, Luke wasn't with him and it was pitch black. He was unsure of how long he had been stuck for, but he got the feeling that he wouldn't be able to last much longer.

He closed his eyes again, still calling out; still trying to cling to some invisible shred of hope that he could still be found.

* * *

"This is Lost Sheep One calling Crazy Cooter. Y'all still got your ears on?"

"This is Crazy Cooter, still here Luke."

"Have y'all found any sign of him yet Cooter?"

"Nah, and we been searchin' a little more than three hours straight now."

"I ain't givin' up on him Cooter. I'll search all night and day if I have to."

"Where are y'all Luke?"

"Don't you mean where are y'all Bo, cause that's the question I'm askin'."

"No I mean where are y'all? We should meet up and report back to Jesse and see if we can't find another way to find Bo."

"Yeah I guess…I'm just comin' up to the roadworks on Ol' Mill Bridge."

* * *

Bo's heart leapt in his chest as he heard the low rumbling of Dixie's engine and could tell it wasn't far off, but instantly became afraid and alarmed as the engine's noise halted in one place and then started to head back the way it had come. Bo started to panic as he heard it, trying to think of something, something that Luke would recognize to be him without question.

He wriggled his right hand, trying desperatly, sobbing with pain and fear, to free it from the vice like grip that held it tightly in place against his stomach. The thing he needed toalert Luke was only a short length away, he only needed to movehis handa little... he just hoped and prayed as he slipped his hand a little nearer that it still worked.

_**Now what do y'all think he's tryin' to get? I ain't got a clue so don't look at me, I suggest you read on and find out.**_

"Ah Luke, do y'all ever think we'll find him?"

"Of course we will Daisy. A Duke don't never give up, y'all should know that."

"But what if they've took him? What d'we do then?"

Luke fell silent as he drove Dixie back down the long road. He hadn't thought about the possibility that Bo may well have been kidnapped. Now that he did, his face muscles grew tenser as his anger at Boss flared again. He looked over at Daisy staring worriedly at the sky, her lips moving in silent prayer.

The silence that fell, save the roar of Dixie's engine, was tense and worry-filled, causing Luke to jump in alarm when a familiar noise cut through it from somewhere behind them. His foot quickly slammed on the brake pedal, and he shut Dixie's engine off.

"Luke! What are you doin'!"

"Shh, listen."

Daisy sat, head cocked, slightly scared at the sudden gleam that had sprung up in her cousins' eyes. She waited a good couple of minutes until finally speaking again.

"Luke, I don't hear nothin'."

"It was Bo, it had to have been."

"Sugar, Bo ain't here."

"Just hang on a sec."

Luke quickly picked up the handset of the CB and spun it to what Daisy recognized as the General's frequency.

"Lost Sheep 2, this is Lost Sheep 1, come in Bo."

"Luke we already..."

"Bo, if y'all can hear me, do what you did a minute ago again."

Luke fell silent, waiting again for the sound he swore he had heard. He sighed as only the silence greeted him, and he flung the handset back.

"Luke…what did y'all hear?"

"Well I thought…"

But he broke off as the noise rang through the air again, and this time he knew Daisy had heard it.

"That ain't…is it…?"

"It sure is Daisy."

He quickly started up Dixie's engine and turned it around towards the way they had just been driving away from, speeding down the road.

"Y'all keep talkin to Bo on the CB. Chances are, if he ain't talkin back somethin's wrong. Get him to keep pressin' the General's horn."

"Right you are Luke."

Daisy quickly took up the handset in her shaking hand.

"Bo, sugar, this is Daisy. Now don't y'all worry we're comin to get ya. You just press that horn one more time for us."

The Dixie horn that once rung so confidently down Hazzard's roads was now weak and out of tune, but to Luke, nothing sounded more wonderful. It was a sign that Bo was around somewhere. Of course, there was always a nagging feeling that told him that it could so easily be another of Boss Hogg's tricks. But with Bo missing, Luke wasn't about to take any chances.

He soon rounded the corner and slowed as he recognized the road ahead. Directly in front of him, he saw two diggers and a large dirt mound. He could see someone had landed awkwardly from the large scuff marks and dents in the diggers, but also from the way the pile had been part flattened.

He felt a tugging at his sleeve and looked to Daisy as she stammered, suddenly very pale.

"L...Luke….over there."

_**Well, looks like Luke and Daisy found him…but is Bo still in the land of the livin'? Oh I hate to look. Y'all tell me when this is over.**_


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: You know, you guys are really really great! 14 reveiws for the last chapter! As promised, because I got so many reveiws so quickly, I am updating quicker than planned. Hope you all enjoy it and keep R&R like you so wonderfully have been. Thanks so much! xxx**

* * *

Luke looked over to where Daisy was fixated, and could now see why she had gone so pale. The General was smashed side on into a tree, the driver's door blocked by the large trunk, rear end severely dented and the front end smashed in, and an unmoving figure slumped in the driver's seat. Luke immediately turned Dixie so that the headlights were shining on the inside of the General. 

"Daisy, CB Uncle Jesse and Cooter, tell them we got Bo but we're goin' to need the fire department to cut him free."

Luke had hurtled out andraced to the passenger side of the bright orange race car long before he finished the sentence. He swallowed, blood pounding through his ears, as he looked over the site of his youngest cousin. Bo's pale face was covered with blood pulsing from an open head wound, turning his honey blonde hair to a dark red. The steering wheel and dash had been partly crumpled, pinning his right arm against his chest. His left arm was trapped between the roll cage and the crumpled door, his breathing soundingalarmingly labored, his eyes shut. Suddenly, Luke was very glad the General was fitted with a roll cage…he hated to think what could have happened if there hadn't been.

Luke reached in and gently touched Bo's shoulder, shaking it lightly.

"Bo…come on Bo…gimme a sign that you can hear me…come on you's was beeping at me a minute ago…"

He moved his hand to Bo's neck, checking for a pulse when he got no response, and breathed a sigh of relief when he found one. But he knew that Bo being unconscious when he had head wounds meant that they might never get him to wake again should they let him stay that way for too long.

"Bo…Beauregard Duke you open them eyes 'afore I get Uncle Jesse to switch ya from here to Chickasaw County!"

"Luke…don't y'all ever call me Beauregard again or I'll switch you past Chickasaw."

Luke laughed gently, glad to hear Bo's voice, no matter how frighteningly weak and raspy it sounded. He gently reached to hold Bo's right hand in his, the only part of Bo he thought he could safely touch without hurting him. When he looked back to Bo's face, he spotted the unmistakable shine of fear and pain raise up behind baby blue eyes. He gently squeezed the trembling hand that clung weakly to his, and smiled reassuringly.

"Don't y'all worry Bo. We're here now, ain't nothin' else that's gonna happen t'ya."

"Luke…I…Luke I can't feel my legs..."

**Uh oh, now that never sounds too good in any situation do it? Looks like Luke aint none too comfortable with that either.**

Alarm Bells instantly triggered in Luke's head, the signs that Bo may have picked up a serious spinal cord injury staring him in the face. But, intent on sparing his cousin any more pain, he smiled and again squeezed his younger cousin's hand.

"We're gonna get you outta here, then you'll be up and drivin' again before we even know it. Y'all just gotta keep talkin' to me Bo, you gotta stay awake cuz."

He could see Bo's eyes drifting shut already, watching as he kept battling to keep them open.

"Luke! Uncle Jesse's gonna be here in a minute, but Cooter says he can't raise no one on the fire department signal or Hazzard Net. It seems they're all still at the party, do you want him to try Ambulance?"

He looked hurriedly over to Bo who he could see was fading fast, before quickly turning back to Daisy.

"No, just tell him to bring something to cut the side of the General off, some blankets and a long, hefty piece of wood."

"Sure thing."

"W…was that…Daisy?"

"Yeah Bo, she's here with me. Uncle Jesse and Cooter are getting' here as fast as they can then we're gonna work on getting' y'all to Tri County."

"Luke I…I ain't gonna make it."

The words tore wounds deep into Luke's heart and he had to fight to keep his emotions in check when he heard Bo say them. He gripped his cousin's hand tighter as he felt the grip loosen and leant in to touch Bo's cheek gently with the other.

"Bo, you are gonna make it, I promise come hell or high water, I will get you to safety. Do you trust me?"

Bo nodded slightly, nuzzling slightly into Luke's warm hand, savoring the comfort the small touch brought. Of course he trusted Luke; he had done all his life. But the horrible realisation of his situation hit him hard as he thought of trust, and how Luke had trusted him for so many years with the General Lee, and how Jesse had trusted him with looking after the farm...

He shifted slightly, trying to fight back tears asthe action pulledat his trapped arm and his chest blazed with furious protest, to try and face Luke more, to get him to understand what he was saying.

"I'm sorry 'bout the General and the barn, I should…"

But Luke abruptly cut him off mis sentence, reaching in further to stop Bo from moving anymore than was neccessary, seeing the shine of unshed tears lingering in blue eyes.

"Bo! Listen to me. Stop worryin' about the dang barn, we know what happened and there was no way you could've taken those guys who did it alone. The General'll be as good as new within a week with Cooter workin' on him, y'all know that. The most important thing now is gettin' you to safety."

Bo was about to reply when he was interrupted by the familiar and welcome sound of Uncle Jesse's truck horn. Luke heard Bo groan as the extra headlights brightened up the inside, and held his hand tighter as he cried out in pain. Luke turned slightly as he felt a hand on his shoulder, and met the kind gaze of Uncle Jesse. All it took was a short look between the two of them to give each other the information they needed.

Bo whimpered as he felt Luke's hands leave his battered hands and face, but hushed instantly as Uncle Jesse's replaced it and his soothing voice slipped through his ears.

"How's he doin' Luke?"

"I don't have a clue Daisy. All I know is he's in a lotta pain and if Cooter don't get here soon…"

"No…you can't mean…Luke just get him outta there now, why bother cutting away the side of the General. Just get him outta there before we lose him."

"Daisy we may not lose him, Bo's a fighter. It's just a possibility if he has to stay in there longer than is necessary. And besides, how d'ya propose we move him? There is a very real chance that he has a spinal cord injury and slidin' him outta the windows could do more damage than good."

"Oh Luke! Me and Jesse done told you both that weldin' those doors shut want a good idea! Now look what's happened. Bo's stuck there hangin' onto his life and there ain't nothin' no one can do about it quickly!"

Before Luke could respond, Daisy had stalked off to the General to talk with Bo.

**See, now there's a Duke with some common sense. Y'all stick around, I think Bo's gonna need all the help he can get.**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: ...what can I say...wow...16 reveiws for the last chapter! I know I keep saying it but you are all soooooooo brilliant! At this rate your going to beat the star wars fans no contest. Hope you all like this chapter, and just to say, if you look on my profile, I am accepting Dukes of Hazzard fic challenges so if there is something you want me to write, gimme a challenge and i'll see what I can do. ;-) keep r&r guys, I love you all. **

* * *

"Urm…ah…uh…Boss?"

Boss Hogg looked up from his money piles on his desk, frowning at the intrusion, and stood up as he saw the extremely worried look on Rosco's face.

"Rosco, I told you not to disturb me when I'm countin' my profits!"

"But Boss….there is two men out front to see you and they…they don't look too happy."

"Well I don't care if they come in with pitchforks, I want them out of here so I can count my money then go home to bed. I gotta rest before I collect my land of them Dukes."

"But…they real mean lookin' and they got guns..."

"Rosco, you got a gun! When I say git rid of them I mean git!"

Rosco shot out of the door, stuttering incoherent words as he went. Boss sat back down, shaking his head and puffing on his cigar. Having Rosco on the force was useful to him because it allowed him to bend the law to his will, and it was another person he could push around, which he enjoyed nearly as much as counting money. But sometimes, he wondered whether it was worth having such a dimwit work for him.

He settled back and gleefully rubbed his hands together as he resumed his counting of his money piles and thinking about the look on the Duke's faces when he came and gave them the property seizure for failure of mortgage payment. He knew they'd have no choice, seeing as they wouldn't have any money to rebuild their livelihood and continue to pay the mortgage.

Suddenly, the door to the small office of the Boar's Nest burst open and Rosco fell through it as Boss jumped out of his skins, nearly toppling backwards over his chair. Boss was about to yell at him when two men stepped in and made him cower further into his seat.

"Nigel…Ronny…now what are y'all doin' here? I...I thought you said you'd skip town after doin' that job."

"We did, but we don't take kindly to havin' to do more than we was paid for."

"Namely havin' to deal with some punk who tried to mess with our plans."

"Now you listen! I ain't payin' you no more money. I set the farm up perfect for you, I can't help it if you let someone follow ya and you got caught."

"Well y'all didn't set it up too perfect Boss. The guy was already there. He said his name was Bo Duke."

Boss froze as the name pounded in his ears, and he looked down at Rosco who sat worriedly on the floor, as heremembered the orders he had given earlier.

"B...B...Bo Duke you say?"

"Yeah, but you got no need to worry, he's been hushed a gooden like you wanted. We done forced him to jump that bridge over Mill River. He landed straight in the roadworks. There ain't no way he survived."

Boss turned a nasty shade of white, before an angry red flared up in his cheeks. He slowly rose to his feet, biting hard on his cigar.

"You…you...blundering…idiots! Bo Duke is one of the people who own that Farm! You may have just blown the whole plan!"

"Now you listen here Boss, you said…"

"I don't care what I said! I gave you strict orders to hurt none of them Dukes should one arrive back earlier!"

"You said you didn't care who it was we was tryin' to hush, so long as we stopped 'em talkin' which we did!"

"You ain't getting no more money. You'll be lucky if you get away with this! I suggest you high-tail it outta my county before the Dukes come lookin' for you, cause I sure ain't takin' the blame for killin' him."

Nigeland Ronny exchanged worried glances, fingering the butts of their guns, tempted to add another name to their hit list. That was until they saw the Sheriff get back to his feet and point his own gun at them. He had enough evidence to lock them both up there and then at Boss Hogg's order. After a couple of tense minutes, they scowled at Boss and left the Boar's Nest, promising themselves they would get that money one way or another.

Boss relaxed, the color starting to come back in his cheeks. He looked over to Rosco as he heard a loud sniff, and found that the man's bottom lip was quivering and he was fidgeting with his hat nervously. All thoughts of yelling at Rosco left him when he saw the sight, because he instantly knew what he was concerned about.

"Uh…Boss…you don't think that…uh…well…that Bo is really…dead…"

"I don't know Rosco…with them two anythin' is possible…we just gotta pray that he'll be alright…or it'll be us goin' down for murder."

"Us Boss?"

"Well you was the one who was meant to make sure that them Dukes were all outta the way. If I go down, then I ain't goin' alone."

"Y…y...yes Boss."

"So y'all better come up with somethin' quick to get us outta the picture for anythin'."

Rosco stumbled out the door, leaving Boss behind with his not so cheerful thoughts.

* * *

"Alright Cooter, we's all set."

Bo flinched as he heard the chainsaw start up, and moved more into Luke's gentle hold as far as his injuries would allow.

**_Now y'all probably wonderin' what's goin' on. Well, while y'all been sittin' cozy,glarin' at Boss, Luke and the rest of the clan have been workin' on a way of gettin' Bo out the General. Jesse has gone and pulled the General clear of the tree, freein' up the drivers side. Cooter's got the chainsaw to saw through the driver side chassis, while Luke has gone and slipped inside to keep Bo steady. The driver's seat's been lowered so Luke could slip in behind so when the time came to get Bo out, it wont be too much of a struggle. And besides, right now I think Bo could do with a bit of support and comfort, don't you?_**

Luke held his baby cousin close, pulling the blankets tighter round the shaking limbs, in an effort to draw some warmth back into them.

"Y'all alright Bo?"

But his reply was drowned out by the screeching of metal on metal as the chainsaw ate through the chassis of the General Lee. He felt Bo jerk in his arms and was quick to put a reassuring hand on Bo's arm.

Within minutes, Cooter had the side of the General cut off, and Bo's left arm and leg were free. Luke directed Bo's gaze away from the freed limbs and onto him, not wishing for Bo to be distressed at the severelydistorted angles at which they stuck out. As the light swung round more to the front of the car so Cooter could cut away the dash that had been crushing Bo's chest, Luke saw blood seeping steadily through Bo's Jean's.

As Jesse rounded the General with the make-shift back brace (**_the hefty board of wood y'all remember Luke asked for earlier_**), Luke shifted Bo carefully into a lying position, working with Cooter as he slowly freed the young man from the dash, always ensuring that his back and neck were supported and that any movements were slow and smooth. As soon as Cooter finished, he rushed to Jesse's side and helped slip the board underneath Bo while Luke dealt with the broken lower half of the body.

Daisy breathed a sigh of relief as Bo was lifted from the wreckage, which was quickly turned into a suppressed gasp of horror as the headlights of numerous vehicles illuminated the blood on Bo's face and his deformed limbs underneath the blankets. She was quick to rush forward as she saw him look fearfully around for Luke, who was still getting out of the General, obviously trying to compose himself. She took up his right hand and spoke to him soothingly as he was quickly loaded into the back of the pickup truck that stood waiting.

She was about to call Luke to come over when she saw Bo's face pale further behind the blood that caked it, but as soon as a cry of pain rang out from the weakened young man, Luke was over like a shot and took his place right beside him, stroking his hair like Daisy remembered him doing when Bo was just a little kid and had woken up from a terrible nightmare.

"Hey Cooter, tow the General back to your place would ya, then head on up to the farm and see if y'all cant find out who did this. Chances are they might show up again with us lookin' after Bo."

Cooter, who had been staring heart-brokenly at the sight of one of his best friends so badly hurt, instantly leapt into action at Luke's words.

"That's a ten-four Luke. You make sure you keep me updated ya hear."

"Will do Cooter, and thanks."

Cooter quickly shut the back flap to the truck as Uncle Jesse leapt into the driver's seat and started up the engine. Cooter watched as his best friends disappeared into the night, then turned to the mangled wreckage that lay before him, knowing that to Bo, more than one Duke had been hurt that night.

**Now don't y'all think Bo's outta the woods yet...they's still gotta get him to Tri County...I sure wish I had as much confidence in Luke as Bo seems to have right now...**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Another brill 16 reveiws, keep it up guys and thanks so much. Here's another chapter for you, hope you like it. xxx**

* * *

Luke flinched as Bo's rasping, pain-filled coughs ran weakly underneath the noise of the pick up. Even though he had been trained in the Marines for this type of situation, having to get a casualty safely away from the danger, nothing could have prepared him to have to ensure his own baby cousin, who may have well been his brother, would stay alive in the back of a pick up.

He continued to press firmly on the piece of his shirt that was held against Bo's pulsing head wound; only ever taking it off to top it up with a little moonshine.

**Now, those of y'all who know the Dukes know that Jesse agreed with the US of A government that he would never make or transport moonshine again if Bo and Luke could go free after getting caught on a run. But Uncle Jesse always had a couple of jars on standby for use in an emergency. Ya see, 'shine is not only good drinkin', but also very good at numbin' pain and steralzin' deep wounds.**

Daisy was sat to the other side of Bo, securing his leg and arm as best she could, trying to ignore his pain filled cries, while Luke spoke as soothingly as possible through his own trembling voice.

After a while, Luke slowly maneuvered so that he could prop Bo up against his leg a little, not so much that it could do damage, but enough to give him a drink. He took up the small jam jar and pressed the rim gently to Bo's lips, willing him to take some. But as soon as Bo smelt what it was, he rolled his head weakly away.

"Luke…ya know if you get caught….ya'll be locked up…"

"Right now Bo, I don't give a double damn about the law. This is gonna help you with the pain and that's all I care about, so you better drink some before I done go and force it down your throat."

Daisy smiled as she heard the almost father like tone in Luke's voice, and was suddenly very glad that he was here. She looked back to her finished make-shift splint on Bo's leg, and was just starting on making his arm comfortable when Luke's terrified cry rang out.

"Bo! Bo get those eyes back open!"

She looked over to see Bo lying motionless and Luke leaning over his face, before looking to her with a petrified expression.

"Daisy, he ain't breathin'."

* * *

Cooter towed the wreck that once was the fastest car on Hazzard's dirt roads into his garage; covering it up inside before locking the doors and taking his truck back up to the Duke Farm. He watched as he drove, all the people of Hazard drunkenly walking back to their houses, cheering at him as he drove past, oblivious to the fact that someone's life hung in the balance somewhere along the dirt roads.

He wanted nothing more than to get up to the Boar's Nest and give Boss Hogg what was coming to him, but he had a promise to Luke to take care of the farm, and when it came to promises, Cooter didn't break them for nobody, especially if the promise was to a Duke.

He pulled into the small front yard and stopped his truck right next to Enos' patrol car. He looked around for the good-hearted cop, and found him sitting on the front porch of the house.

Surveying the damage to the barn, which had now been reduced to a black, smoking ruin, he made his way slowly over to sit beside Enos.

"Howdy Cooter…what's the word on Bo. I heard Daisy sounding mighty panicked on the CB, but I promised Uncle Jesse I'd stay here."

"It ain't lookin' good Enos, he was barley alive when Luke found him and the General's a real mess."

"But he'll be alright right? I mean, he ain't gonna…"

But Enos broke off when he saw the downcast, helpless look pass over Cooter's normally smiling face, and felt tears sting warm against the cool night air in his eyes.

"Ah shucks Cooter, if I'd known how far Boss would go, I would have worked harder to warn Luke and Bo."

"Ya did what ya could Enos. All we can do now is wait and try and help the Dukes as much as we can."

He sighed and rose to his feet, heading indoors to start cleaning up the horrible mess that was waiting for him. He was soon followed by Enos, whose eyes he could see were red; it looked like he had been crying. He gently patted his shoulder and they silently started the work.

**I'll tell y'all, I'm plumb worried about Bo, just as Enos and Cooter are. Didn't I say the next time he'd be comin' back into town would be in a wooden box?**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: ok let me first laugh and apologize to everyone for leaving you at such an awful cliffhanger. After several death threats I decided it would be safer for my health, and my email inbox if I updated quicker so here you go. **

**Sorry about the shortness of last chapter. I needed a small filler more than anything else and I wanted something dramatic in there, and I realised that I had left Enos out so I thought you would all want to know why he wasnt helping everyone get Bo out. Anywho, here's the next chapter, keep on R&R, you all make me so happy when you do. :-)**

**WARNING: Tissue's may be needed, as said by my beta reader.**

* * *

Luke paced the waiting room of Tri County Hospital, biting his lip furiously. Uncle Jesse and Daisy were sitting, looking blankly into space, each trying to collect their nerves for the update on Bo's condition.

Luke had managed to get Bo breathing again after 2 long minutes of CPR, but was shaken and fearful when his youngest cousin's eyes didn't flicker back open. They got him to the hospital without any further event nearly four hours ago, and since Bo had been wheeled off into emergency surgery, they hadn't heard a word.

He sighed and crossed over to the window, looking out over the early morning hills. The sun wouldn't rise for another couple of hours yet, he knew, but he wished it would rise earlier today. Whenever he was troubled, he always watched the early morning sunrises, it made him feel peaceful and calm and it wasn't usually too long before Bo followed him out.

Bo was a light sleeper when it came to Luke; he could sense when Luke had gotten out of bed mere seconds after him leaving the room, and always knew to look for him in the hay loft where they would usually just sit in silence, playing with the hay and watching the sunrise illuminate the farm. It was very rare that Luke ever really spoke to Bo about what was troubling him, but Bo was always content to just make Luke feel better by being there with him.

"I'm looking for a Mr. Jesse Duke?"

Luke spun round to see a blonde nurse standing at the doorway to the waiting room, and stepped forward with Daisy and Jesse as they stood, grim-faced and concerned.

"That'd be me. This is my niece and nephew, Luke and Daisy Duke. How is Bo doin'?"

"Well we just got done with the operations, we're so sorry it took us this long to give you an update but his injuries were serious and we had to act quickly. He broke his left leg in two places, his left arm in one just below the elbow, sustained a couple of broken ribs and bruised lungs as a result of the impact, a relatively minor head wound and an internal bleed, though we managed to catch that pretty early on so no damage was done. He's suffering from a mild concussion, and we'll have to wait until he's conscious again until we can do any x-rays on his back to check for any signs of damage there."

Daisy huddled into Luke as the nurse reeled off Bo's injuries, and he wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulders, sighing. The injuries meant Bo wouldn't be back on his feet for a good couple of months, meaning he was going to miss the big race for his Hazzard County Championship, as well as the trip to the NASCAR races that he and Luke had been planning for a while now. Putting it all into perspective though, Luke was just glad that Bo was even alive.

The nurse finished talking with Uncle Jesse and left the family alone to talk, something which they all knew would be needed before they could go and see their stricken family member.

"Luke…Daisy…y'all alright?"

Daisy just nodded, wiping away her tears and pulling out of Luke's strong embrace, steeling herself up. Luke sighed and his hands went to his hips.

"I just can't believe this Uncle Jesse. Somthin' this major has never happened to anyone in Hazzard 'afore, not even in the rallies. And when the time comes for someone for it to happen to…it just had to be Bo."

"I understand that, and its got me a bit shaken up too. But the last thing we need is to have Bo find that out. Now he's still alive and we should be thankful that the good lord ain't decided to take him away from us yet, so we's goin' to have to pull ourselves together, and be there for him while he's healin'."

"I know…did the nurse say when we could see him?"

"They're just settin' him up in ICU; she'll come down and get us when he's ready."

Luke nodded and sat in one of the soft seats, trying to shake the images of Bo helplessly trapped in the General out of his head. He had never before heard Bo sound so frightened or seen the gut wrenching look of pain shine behind his eyes, not even when Luke was drafted out to Vietnam.

He just couldn't get his head around why anyone, even Boss, would want to do this to Bo. Sure they both had enemies that had threatened to hurt them before, and sometimes they did too. But not one had crossed that line and gone as far as to actually nearly kill them.

Jesse and Daisy watched Luke from the other side of the room, knowing what he was thinking about, and concerned to how he might react seeing Bo so banged up. As he had rightly said, no one had ever been so seriously hurt in Hazzard Country before, the only time he had really seen someone worse off than Bo may be was when he was in the Marines.

They got the feeling, that it may not just be Bo that they would have to worry about.

**Ya see, them two is so close that what happens to one affects the other in some shape or form. Alls I know is, Luke's gonna need someone to help him to help Bo…now don't that make sense?

* * *

**

Eventually, the young nurse returned, a comforting smile on her face. Luke was on his feet in an instant and out the door following the nurse before anyone even realized what had happened. Uncle Jesse and Daisy followed somberly behind, allowing Luke to be the one to see Bo first, understanding his need to do so.

But as the nurse stopped outside the room, Luke hesitated, pausing just a few steps away. He had been telling himself that he had seen far worse than this before, that just because it was Bo it shouldn't make much difference. But as he got further and further there, he realized that it did make a difference, it made a world of difference. Bo was his best friend, Bo was his cousin, Bo was his brother…Bo was everything that ever mattered to Luke, and to see that on the verge of slipping away from him…

He jumped when he felt a warm hand touch his shoulder and turned to see Uncle Jesse's encouraging, supportive face meet his sights.

"You's goin' to be alright Luke?"

"I…I don't know Uncle Jesse…"

"If you don't want to go in there, then we's all understand Luke."

Luke nodded, turning his attention back to the door, before softly replying.

"I may not want to…but what I want don't matter now. What matters is what Bo wants, and he would want me to be with him."

He gingerly reached out and turned the handle to the room, stepping gently inside and continued his walk, stopping just short of the bed that his youngest cousin was laid in. He fought back the lump that had risen in his throat as he noticed how small and fragile Bo looked, even though Bo had by far surpassed Luke's height.

Bo just looked so…helpless. He was surrounded by machine's, some beeping some silent, IV drips were steadily dripping a clear liquid into his veins as well as a blood drip which at least helped to explain why Bo looked so deathly pale. His handsome face was covered by cuts, bruises and an oxygen mask which rested gently over his nose and mouth, and a stitched up gash just above his right eye.The rest of Bo was hard to see, due to the fact that he was covered practically everywhere with either plaster or bandages. All hints of his youthful vibrancy had disappeared, all traces of the confident young man that Luke had grown up with, seemingly wiped from this broken shell.

He heard Daisy take a shaky breath, and braced himself as he crossed to the right side of the bed, taking a seat beside Bo and holding gently onto his hand, careful to avoid the IV needles taped to the back.

"I...Bo I'm...oh god Bo I'm so sorry...I never should've left ya...god look what they done to ya..."

Daisy watched as Luke looked over his cousin, biting her lip to try and halt the tears that never seemed to stop flowing down her cheeks. Luke looked so worried; despite the fact she could tell he was trying to hide it. She quickly took a seat next to him when he saw his head hang as he got no response to his unecesary apology and wrapped comforting arms around his shuddering shoulders, as he silently wept.

Jesse watched his niece and nephews. The day that each of them had come to live in Hazzard, although not for the best of reasons, were three of the happiest days of his life. Luke, Daisy and Bo had gotten used to each other's company so quickly and each had found something in the other that they could connect with. Of course, Luke and Bo had bonded so deeply that they were practically inseparable, but they always made sure that Daisy was never left out when they could help it.

To have one of them so seriously hurt was to Jesse, and probably to Luke and Daisy too, like having a part of each of them lay stricken in that bed and it tore at their hearts. Jesse crossed silently over to the pair, taking a seat behind them and gently slipped his arms around them both.

**Don't it just break your heart to see them all like that? **


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: What has happened to everyone! Only 8 reveiws for the previous chapter! Glad I got some but still...! Come on I know you can do better than that! **

**Because the last few chapters have been so down and depressing, I decided to make this one a little more lighthearted...so you realise that means no update on Bo right...-ducks crankshafts and beer glasses- Hey hey hey! Come on if you reveiw then i'll update quicker and you can know more about him alright! Sheesh:-p**

**R&R...please!**

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Rosco sat outside Cooter's garage the next morning, looking around for the crazy mechanic. He knew that Cooter had the General, there was no one else who could fix him up as well as Cooter could after such a bad accident, and without a warrant there wasn't anyway he could get in unless Cooter let him. He needed to get to the General in order to get Boss out of the predicament he was in, to do what he had done to the boys so many times…plant evidence.

Sure enough, Cooter soon pulled into the garage parking bay, frowning as he saw Rosco step out of his patrol car and start to head over. He leant against the side of his truck, hands in his pockets and in no mood to deal with what appeared to be an oncoming Boss Hogg scheme. He was plum worried about Bo, having received no word from Luke as of yet as to how Bo was doing.

"Mornin' Rosco, what can I do for ya."

"Cooter, don't you 'morning Rosco' me. Now I know you got the General in your garage, and I want to see it."

"What General?"

Rosco stood up straighter, frowning at Cooter.

"Y'all know very well which General. General Lee."

'Rosco are you goin' squirrelly? General Lee's been dead for years and years."

"Cooter Davenport! You know too well I mean the Duke Boys car."

'Oh! You mean **_the _**General Lee! Well what about him?"

"It's in your garage."

"What is?"

"The General Lee."

"Is where?"

"In your Garage."

"What is?"

**Don't you just love ol' Cooter? A master of shucking and jivin' and a damndecent friend too.**

Cooter had to fight back hoots of laughter and keep his face straight as Rosco started his usual incoherent noises in anger. Cooter knew Luke didn't want him to get at Boss yet, they had to make sure that Boss really was in on the scheme in the first place, but that didn't stop Cooter having a little fun with his henchmen.

"Cooter Davenport, now you listen. The General Lee is in your garage and I want to take a look at it! Now is you goin' to let me in or not?"

"Not."

Rosco jumped in surprise at Cooter's sudden change of attitude, but quickly puffed up his chest and drew himself up to full height…which actually wasn't very tall.

"Why not?"

"I don't gots to have a reason, it's my garage."

"You better have a good reason, of I'll cuff ya and stuff ya for getting' in the way of official police business."

Cooter now pushed himself away from the side of his truck and stood nose to nose with Rosco, who instantly looked very uncomfortable.

"Alright Rosco. I ain't goin' to let you in cause you're plannin' to plant somethin' in the General to frame the Duke Boys for sumthin' they didn't do."

"Oh now you just hush Cooter. I want to search the General to see if there's any evidence of who ran Bo off the road and killed him last night, god rest his soul."

At this, Cooter raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"Now how'd you know bout Bo? He's only found six hours ago and Luke, Jesse and Daisy've all stayed at the hospital. Ain't no one had time to tell anyone bout his condition."

Now Rosco looked really worried, and Cooter enjoyed watching him squirm and stumble for an explanation for a while before finally pushing Rosco away from him.

"Rosco, I suggest you get your facts right. For one, Bo ain't dead and two, we's already know who did this to him and the barn. So you's just go and tell Boss that as soon as Bo is up to it, we'll be on his tail faster than polecat's on grease."

Rosco's eyes went so wide Cooter though they might pop out of his head. Cooter shook his head in disgust and went to unlock his office door, when a timid voice sounded behind him. He turned round to see Rosco looking worriedly at him, playing with his hat which was now in his hands.

"Cooter…uh how…how is Bo…really?"

Cooter seriously debated whether or not he should tell him, but the look in Rosco's eyes told him that the Sheriff was genuinely concerned and he sighed.

"I don't know Rosco….I just…don't know."

He slipped silently into the garage and locked the doors behind him, pulling the cover off the wreck that stood dejectedly before him and getting to work.

**Now look here….do y'all recognize those two fella's steppin' out them bushes? I sure do…**

Nigel and Ronny waited until the Sheriff took off in his patrol car and Cooter locked the doors to his garage before stepping out of their hiding places.

"That ain't possible. There ain't no way that guy survived that accident!"

"Well Nigel at the moment it looks like he did."

"So what we goin' to do now?"

"We's just gonna have to wait on the bank raid and finish this guy off before he can squeal on us."

"But Ronny, Boss knows our names and faces! If we kill…"

"Look, this guy's pretty hurt from what I can tell from that accident. It wouldn't be too surprisin' if he just…passes away from his injuries now would it. Then we raid the bank and get out of this hell hole before Boss even knows what hit him."

"I like the way you think."

"Come on, grab the car and let's head to the hideout. With a bit of good timin', we can nail him 'afore he has a chance to wake up."

**Now I'll give ya one guess who 'this guy' is. I sure hope they got good security at that hospital.**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Where had everyone gone? 8 reveiws again last chapter...as well, I'm really pleased that people are still sticking with me. You sure got the star wars fans rilled up because i'm kinda accidentally neglecting the story I got on there for this one...whoops...lol ah its worth it cause you guys are so brilliant at revewing. 4 more reviews and you beat the highest number of reveiws I've ever got. :-)**

**I also keep forgetting to mention 2 things. 1, thanks to whoever it was that has put me in thier C2, its an honour and 2. Do any of you want to actually rp Dukes of Hazzard? Cause if you look on my profile, there is a link to a great rp site where I rp (role play incase you didnt know what rp stood for) as Bo. We have Luke, Daisy, Cooter and Enos, but we really need the other characters for it to work out. Come join us? Just look on my profile for the link.**

**Well thats it for me for today, update in roughly 3 days if the reveiws keep comin' in. Keep it 'tween the ditches you hear:-)**

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Luke jerked awake as the sound of a door opening reached his ears. His eyes instantly traveled over his wounded cousin, watching his muscular chest rise up and down underneath the sheets in time with the gentle beeping of several monitors. He sighed softly, it had been two days since the accident, and since then he hadn't even felt Bo twitch. A warm, soft hand lay itself gently on his shoulder and he turned slightly to smile sadly at Daisy, who handed him his cup of coffee before settling back into the chair next to him.

"Sorry I took so long…"

"I was wonderin' if you'd decided to go back to the farm after all."

"Not on your life Luke. I got side-tracked by some doctors."

He rolled his eyes playfully and sipped his coffee. Daisy always managed to get hit on at least twice in the space of abouta minute, no matter what kind of situation she was in. Uncle Jesse, as much as it pained him to have to do it, had returned to Hazzard that morning to start sorting out all the legalities on the farm. If Boss Hogg's plan was to be foiled early on, the Dukes knew that they couldn't let anything put them on hold.

Daisy had tried to make Luke go with him, noticing the depletion in his usual lively, 'look-on-the-bright-side' attitude and the constant jerk he adopted as he kept himself from falling asleep every couple of minutes. However, no matter how much she argued with him, Luke's decision to stick by his cousin never wavered. She watched him now, as his unrelenting gaze stood steadfast on Bo and she noticed the slight pang of guilt flare behind his eyes. She tenderly rubbed his back in small circles, resting her head on his shoulder until she felt his shoulder's slump and his free hand rubbed over his face.

"Luke…y'all really need to get some rest Sugar. You need to change your clothes and you look so beat, I can watch Bo."

"I can't…Daisy I can't go while he ain't awake. I need to be here if…when he wakes up."

"He ain't gonna be goin' nowhere…"

"I know that but…it makes me feel better…"

"What do you mean?"

Daisy didn't know if Luke would even answer her, so transfixed was he by his youngest cousin that he barley even blinked. When he did respond however, his voice was so quiet it was a struggle to hear him.

"I…I never should've left him Daisy….he wasn't well and I still went and left him. If I'd have stayed like I should've done, then I would have been there to help him and he wouldn't have got hurt. It's…it's my fault Daisy…"

It was all Daisy could do to keep herself from grabbing Luke by the shoulders and shaking him hard to try and get some sense into him. How in the world could he even think such a thing like that? She could understand his wanting to be with Bo, they had been inseparable since they were brought together as children…but Luke blaming himselffor hurtingBo! She had never heard him talk like that before and it scared her.

"Luke…I can't believe you would say that. This isn't and in no way could be your fault! You didn't know the barn was goin' to be attacked and it looks like Bo held out pretty well against the thugs if he managed to actually get away from the farm house…"

"But if I'd been there he wouldn't have had to run to the General and go and…"

"Please…Luke please just stop. There ain't no use you beatin' yourself up 'bout this now, y'all know Bo wouldn't want ya to. We need to be here for him when he comes round and we need to help him get back on his feet."

Slowly nodding, he reached over and took Bo's cold hand in his warm one, his eyes strangely void of any emotion. Daisy recognized it as an old marine trick, something about cutting yourself off from emotion so that it didn't interfere with his duty…and it didn't make her feel any better. She sighed and slipped her arm round his waist again, squeezing slightly, allowing the warmth of his body to soothe her shivering nerves, a warmth that she would have preferred to get from peaceful words and reassuring embraces.

**Now didn't I say that Luke was gonna be needin' somethin' to keep him goin' too? I sure hope ol' Bo wakes up soon or we may haveboth of our favourite boys in hospital beds instead of the one.**

* * *

Jesse stepped confidently into the Boars Nest, greeting everyone who greeted him, trying to ignore some shouted questions as to the whereabouts of Bo, Luke and Daisy. Cooter, who had been sitting at the bar, was quick to stand by Jesse and sit with him at a table, ordering a couple of beers. 

Cooter could tell from the forced expression on Jesse's face that he would rather be doing other, more important things, than be sitting there acting like nothing was wrong, and he put a hand gently on his shoulder, leaning in low as he sipped his beer to whisper.

"Uncle Jesse…how's Bo doin'?"

"He's holdin' on for us Cooter…he ain't with us in the real world yet, but he's hangin'."

Jesse watched Cooter as the gifted mechanic slowly nodded and took a longer swig of his beer, before asking more questions that Jesse didn't want to have to face, but knew he had to because it had been the whole reason he had torn himself away from Bo's bedside in the first place.

"What's goin' to happen with the farm?"

"I just don't know Cooter. Without the boys I cant even begin to repair it, and without the barn I ain't got no way to store my crops and the like which leaves us with no money either."

"Well there's gotta be a way… what 'bout the insurance money…."

"Cooter, listen and you listen good. What I'm 'bout to say must not be repeated to anyone ya hear. J.D set up the attack on the farm…he hired two thugs from Atlanta to do it, and theys were the ones who ran Bo off the road. The barn was blown by the thugs usin' Luke's dynamite arrows, and so we have no way of provin' that it was them two that done it, which means no insurance money."

Cooter could do nothing but sit in silent outrage and disbelief at Jesse's words…Boss Hogg…he was in on the whole thing. Now, he wasn't surprised about the whole attack on the barn…but to actually try and **_kill _**Bo in the process? His oil clad hands balled into fists and he hissed under his breath.

"Uncle Jesse…if y'all want me to go and sort Boss out for ya I got no problem…"

"No Cooter…we don't want no fuss right now. We's just got to get on and continue to pay our mortgage for as long as we can…we'll figure out somethin'. Meanwhile, we gotta get Bo back to his feet."

"But Uncle Jesse, I can't just sit around and do nothin' while my best buddies are sufferin'."

But Jesse just stubbornly shook his head.

"Cooter, just keep workin' on the General for the boys. That's what they'd want ya to do. Now I's got to get to that Bank 'afore it shuts to pay the mortgage."

And with that, he rose from the table, leaving no room to argue the subject further with Cooter. He crossed over to the doorway, again ignoring shouted questions and heading out the door, before quickly snapping his head back round the frame and calling.

"And Cooter..."

"Yes Uncle Jesse?"

"I ain't your Uncle Jesse."

Cooter laughed as the stubborn old man walked out the door smiling slightly, the tension that could be seen in his shoulders decreasing slowly. But as soon as he had disappeared, Cooter's grin slipped off his face and he darted over to the bar, standing on it and whistling loudly to the crowd.

"Alright y'all, listen to me a sec. This is real important…"

**Now what do y'all suppose he's up to? This looks like it's gonna turn real interesting…**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: 9 reveiws guys...where have half of my brilliant reveiwers gone! Well I hope I get some back after this chapter. Thank you everyone who is reveiwing for your kind words of encouragement, they really mean a lot to me and keeps me writing for you guys. Just to say my Internet is down at home this week, so I'm updating at school but the next two weeks are Easter Holiday's and so you may have to wait a while for another update. I'll update again at the end of this week but I dont know how long the next one would be. Sorry :-) Anyway, please enjoy this chapter and R&R as always. **

* * *

"That's right Boss, that's what Cooter said."

"You mean to tell me that Bo Duke is still alive!"

Rosco nodded, his eyes kept firmly on the floor playing with his hat. Ever since Cooter had told him about Bo being alive, he didn't really believe it. From the sounds of what Nigel and Ronny had been saying that night, it had been a horrific accident, one that no one could have survived, and they were experts, heck it was what they did for a living. But when he overheard Jesse and Cooter talking it over at the Boar's Nest just a day ago…well there was nothing to convince Rosco otherwise. Bo had to be alive.

He jumped startled when Boss gleefully clapped and got up from his chair, puffing on the cigar hanging from his mouth.

"Rosco this is perfect! Everythin' can still go accordin' to plan."

"Guh…uh…Boss…what d'ya mean?"

"I mean, with Bo Duke still alive in the hospital and with Nigel and Ronny gone clean outta Hazzard, there is no way to prove that he didn't blow that barn! He don't have an alibi 'cause he wasn't at the party."

Rosco frowned disapprovingly, knowing that his brother-in-law would stoop so low as to hit a man when he's down, but still not liking it all the same.

"But…lil' fat buddy…don't you think it a tad inappropriate to pick on the Dukes when Bo's so badly hurt? I mean…uh…well Cooter don't even know how he is yet, only knows that he's alive and hanging on."

"Rosco, I ain't your lil' fat buddy for one, and secondly, o'course it ain't inappropriate. We's just doin' out duty as lawmen. This case has gots to be investigated, and the conclusions we's drawn is that Bo has got to be the only one who's done this 'cause he was the only one at the farm at the time, and they ain't got a shred of evidence to prove otherwise!"

"But Boss…that would have to mean…uh…we arrest Bo for…arson…an' Insurance Fraud too."

"That's right, which means I get one Duke out my hair for good and the rest of them havin' to buy some new land or move out the county, which Luke Duke can't rightly do seein' as he's on probation!"

**Now normally, this would be where ol' Rosco would have that cheesy grin on his face and those goofy expressions flowin' from his mouth…at the moment I rekon he looks more like a goldfish…**

"Now come on Boss…I know you's got a heart in their somewhere…Bo's all banged up and…well it don't sound too good…can't we just leave the Dukes be…"

"Rosco…if you don't go out to Tri County and get that boy placed under arrest, your fat sister will be outta my house and into yours with a missin' wedding ring quicker than you's can count to 5, now git movin' and take Enos with ya."

"Yes Boss…right away…"

Rosco slunk dejectedly out of the jail, sighing and sliding into his car and petting Flash gently on the head, before half heartedly picking up the CB.

"This is Sheriff Rosco. P. Coltrane, Enos you got your ears on come on?"

"This is Enos, what can I do you for Sheriff?"

"Is…uh…anythin' happenin' on this back roads, come back?"

"Nothin' Sheriff….'s been mighty quiet since the Duke boys…well since they went to the hospital…

"I know Enos…listen we's goin' over there, I want you to meet me on Possum Road in 5 minutes…"

"Sure thing Sheriff, I'm mighty pleased to hear you say that…I's been wantin' to see Bo since he was brought in. I haven't heard anythin' for little over a week now…"

"Enos…quit your blabberin' an git movin'…"

"Yes Sir, I'm gone."

Rosco replaced the handset and sat back in his seat, staring fixedly ahead of him, before slowly powering up the engine and speeding away, sirens and lights blaring.

**Now I tell y'all….if one of Boss' schemes makes Rosco feel this bad, how you think ol' Uncle Jesse, Luke and Daisy's goin' to take this…the phrase don't shoot the messenger comes to mind…**

Daisy walked into the waiting room, smiling as she saw Luke splayed out across a couple of chairs with Uncle Jesse not too far off, watching over him. It had been a week since the accident, and a couple of days since Jesse's visit to Hazzard. After sorting out everything he could, he could see no point in staying at the farm and so stayed at the hospital with Luke and Daisy.

Luke still refused to leave Bo in the hospital without him being somewhere nearby. However, all three, with the help of some doctors and nurses who were rapidly becoming concerned about Luke too, reached a compromise. Luke could have round the clock visiting hours with Bo on the condition that he started to sleep, eat and take regular showers again. Of course, there were no beds to offer him, but Luke didn't care, he would sleep on the floor if it meant he could stay with Bo and the food from the cafeteria wasn't too bad either.

Jesse smiled as Daisy wrapped her arms around his neck from behind and gave his cheek and affectionate peck, gazing too at her oldest cousin. She broke away from Uncle Jesse, and sat in the chair next to Luke's head, taking it in her lap and gently stroking the dark curls away from his eyes and forehead. Luke had always been a light sleeper, and he stirred slightly at the movements, but didn't wake on account of he was too shattered to lift himself from the peaceful tranquility of slumber. Eventually, three of the Dukes were fast asleep, no need for words between them, the tension and fear that still resided in the air speaking volumes for each.

**Did she just say three of the Dukes…weren't there four last time we's checked?**

Bo's hand clenched painfully on the hospital sheets, as his painless slumber started to come to an end and he felt a strong hand clamped on his right arm. He slowly opened his eyes, groaning as he saw two shadowy figures standing beside him on either side but quickly shut them again as the glare of the bright white lights drew more pain.

He heard one of the figures speak, but still drowsy from the medication and fighting to keep back a wave of nausea, he barley heard anything. He squinted again, slowly bringing his eyes open, allowing them some time to get used to the light…but that was when he knew something was wrong. He knew that if Luke and Daisy were where he thought they would be, they would have been speaking soothingly to him, encouraging him, making him feel loved and protected…but none of those came to him, not one utterance of compassion or joy at his eyes beginning to open, just a cold strong hand clamped onto his shoulder…and then the barrel of a gun pressed into his throbbing temple.

He opened his eyes properly, and watched horrified as the blurry figures swam into focus, two figures he defiantly did not want to see. His breathing quickened through the oxygen mask on his face he could now feel was there, as the grinning man stepped over, holding a syringe in one hand and the other one reaching for the mask.

Bo tried to lift his left hand off the bed to bat the other man's hand away, but found now that it was caked in plaster and was actually laid across his stomach on top of a pillow. He felt his chest constrict painfully as the oxygen slipped away with the mask that fell onto his chest, he opened his mouth to try and scream a warning, to get someone to help him, but instead nothing but a painfully scratchy whisper emitted from the young man's throat.

"Luke….help…."

He listened helpless as the two men laughed and groaned as the barrel of the gun pressed harder still into his bruised temple.

"He ain't comin' to help ya kid, there ain't no one comin' to help you where we's planning on sending ya."

Bo tensed as the needle neared his arm, the metal point quickly approaching his feverish skin. He whimpered as his chest constricted again and he felt the sharp prick of the needle penetrate the skin of his upper right arm.

**Ain't that a sight to wake up to? Right when Bo goes and pulls himself outta the land of the dead, there's two guys just waitin' to send him with a one way ticket back. Folks, I think it woulda been easier if Bo just stayed asleep, don't you?**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Hey loads of my reveiwers came back! Woo hoo! Thanks guys, stick with me now! Vinsmouse wanted me to update quicker than two weeks for some strange reason ( :-p ) and so thanks to her and the brilliant reveiwers I have, I decided as a treat to update earleir than expected. :-) Hope you like it and Happy Easter everyone!**

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"Hey! What d'ya thinks you's doin'?"

Bo looked over to the doorway, just in time to see a blur of blue dash forward and tackle Nigel to the floor, before standing up and bashing the gun away from his head, then sending a hard punch cracking along Ronny's jaw line. Bo was near enough ready to sob with relief as Luke's eyes met his, and his gentle hand quickly placed the oxygen mask back over his nose and mouth.

"Y'alright Bo?"

But Bo's eyes went wide again as Nigel got up behind Luke, with a gun clenched in his hand. He opened his mouth to cry out to Luke as the butt of the gun raised high above Luke's head. But Luke was already turned around and had crashed his fist into Nigel's stomach, sending the man bent double into the opposite wall of the room. Luke strode forward to grab him, when a hard blow to the back of his neck sent him stumbling sideways, and he slumped against the wall by Bo's bed.

Ronny grinned and stood Luke up, before bringing his fist hard into his stomach, sending Luke sliding down the wall, gasping for air. Nigel started to head back over to Bo, kicking Luke's legs out the way as he did so, but stopped frozen as an alarm sounded through the room. Ronny cursed and grabbed Nigel's arm.

"Come on, I ain't gettin' caught 'cause of these two."

"We're gonna get you Bo Duke, and your friend here to so you just better watch your back."

With that the two men pelted from the room and Luke pushed himself back to his feet to wrap strong, comforting arms around his sobbing younger cousin, gently rocking him as best he could without hurting him, smoothing his sweat drenched locks of hair, his heart wrenching as Bo's muffled cries vibrated through the oxygen mask.

"Luke…Luke…"

"Bo calm down cousin, I'm here it's alright. Ain't no one else gonna hurt ya."

Luke looked down to see the syringe still lodged in Bo's arm, and winced as he carefully removed it, praying that whatever was in there hadn't managed to enter Bo's system. From what he could see, it hadn't but he still needed to warn the doctor's all the same.

As if right on cue, two doctors and a nurse rushed into the room and Luke quickly explained what had happened and gave them the syringe before stepping away, hunched over slightly as he clutched his rapidly bruising middle so the doctor's could get a good look at Bo.

Bo looked over frightened to Luke as the two doctors surrounded him and asked him question after question, albeit gently, but still daunting as he tried to get a grip on what was happening. He answered them one after the other, his words still slightly slurred from the medication. He looked to the doorway as someone called his name and looked horrified as he saw Luke being taken away by a nurse, but calmed when Luke gently shook his head and mouthed 'I'll be right back.'

**Now I'm sure glad Luke was in the right place at the right time…ain't it good to see Bo has someone to watch his back?**

It wasn't too long before Luke was allowed back in to see Bo, after protesting he was completely fine and that he only had the wind knocked out of him. By the time Luke re-entered the room, Uncle Jesse and Daisy had been filled in on the situation and were with Bo, the head of his bed had been raised so Bo was sitting up and the oxygen mask had been replaced with a breathing tube that snaked round his head and finished just under his nose.

Luke had never been happier to see his cousin's blue eyes dart to the door, and felt like leaping for joy as a small smile spread over Bo's face. He crossed over to the side of the bed and placed a hand gently on Bo's uninjured shoulder, smiling down at him.

"How you feelin' cuz?"

"Like I been thrown from a truck and run over a million times, but other than that pretty good."

Everyone in the room smiled and gave a quiet chuckle as the familiar Bo humor sprung up in his words, despite the fact that his voice was still horribly scratchy and sounded extremely painful. Luke took up his usual seat, just looking in disbelief at his cousin's appearance.

This smiling, joking young man was a complete contrast to what he had seen just a couple of hours ago when no one was sure whether or not he would be able to pull himself from the fine line between life and death he seemed to be walking. But as he carefully studied his cousin's outward appearance, he noticed the humor and small smiles as a mask of how he truly felt. It was only by growing so close to Bo as children that he could see the hidden shine of fear and distress in his eyes, and the tense way in which he held himself, trying to keep the rest of the world completely oblivious to how he was truly feeling.

Luke bit on his bottom lip gently, knowing that Bo didn't want to distress Uncle Jesse, Daisy or in fact Luke himself and was putting himself through the pain of keeping everything bottled up by himself, something which Luke was adamant he wouldn't let Bo do for very long.

After a couple of hours, everyone looked up from their cheerful conversation as the Doctor walked into the room and everyone left as he did a few routine tests on Bo. They all walked down to the waiting room where they had spent the past week, each one of them having had their spirits lifted so much so that when Rosco and Enos greeted them, grim looks on the both of their faces, the three didn't stop smiling but greeted them with open arms, telling them how Bo was.

Eventually though, Jesse realized that the pair was there for a reason other than Bo when they didn't ask if they could see him or how long it would take for Bo to be released.

"So, is you's two gonna stand there all day or are you gonna tell us what it is you came here for?"

This stopped Luke and Daisy's conversation in an instant, and they too looked over to Enos and Rosco.

"Well…uh…you see Jesse…well…"

"Rosco would you spit it out, we ain't got all day."

"Urm…Enos you tell 'em."

"W...why me Sheriff?"

"Cause you're the deputy and I say so."

Luke instantly knew that something was horribly, horribly wrong as Enos took off his hat and started playing with it and he could see tears of guilt and the silent plea for forgiveness playing in his eyes.

"Well….this ain't easy for me to say….but…well…Boss wants Bo….placed under arrest for…suspected arson and Insurance fraud…"

For a moment there was nothing but an awful silence in the room, smiles quickly fading from faces and anger replacing the joy of having Bo back with them in the land of the living.

"Why you…"

Jesse quickly stepped in front of Luke as he started forward, his hands clenched into tight fists at his sides. He grabbed the man's shoulders firmly as Luke fought against his grip, and soon Daisy found herself having to hold Luke round his middle carefully to stop him throwing Uncle Jesse off too, screaming hysterically at him.

"Luke! Luke just stop it!"

"Daisy, Uncle Jesse let go of me and let me get to him!"

"Luke, we can't have you thrown in jail now. Bo needs you Luke, he's gonna need you to get him through this."

Eventually, they managed to press Luke firmly into a chair, and Daisy sat next to him, her arms wrapped round his shoulders as Luke's face sank into his hands. Jesse turned slowly to Rosco, having no intention whatsoever for yelling at Enos because he was a dear friend to the family, and he could see that what he had to do was eating him up inside already without Jesse adding his own two-penny worth in. But Rosco…he just stood there with the same grim look on his face, and that was something Jesse just couldn't stand.

"Rosco, I want to know what you think gives you the right to barge on in here and make up such ridiculous charges."

Rosco visibly cowered under Jesse's withering gaze and Luke watched with grim satisfaction as he stumbled over his words.

"Well…I uh…you see Boss Hogg said…"

"I don't give a damn what J.D has to say, you know too well that Bo ain't done nothin' wrong!"

"Now Jesse that's beside the point…"

"Oh no it ain't!"

"No it ain't…"

"I'll tell you what the point is. The point is J.D is tryin' to frame Bo and I just ain't gonna let that happen! Now you git back to that office of yours and tell that overgrown pile of cow dung exactly what I think! Go on git!"

Daisy placed a calming hand on her Uncle's arm, trying to keep his blood pressure down as Rosco ran from the room, stuttering incoherent words and visibly trembling. Enos made a move to follow, but Luke called him back.

"Enos, s'alright you can stay…you weren't the one at fault. Rosco knows Bo ain't done nothin' and it ain't fair draggin' you into his and Boss' scheme, 'sides I bet you want to see Bo huh?"

Enos nodded gratefully at Luke as they all stood up and headed back to Bo's room, each composing themselves before heading in so as not to let Bo know what was going on, there was no need to tell him until they were certain that was going to happen.

"Hey Bo, you's got a visitor alre…."

But as they stepped in the room, one look at Bo's face told them that he must have already got the news. His face was back to the horrible pale color it had been, he was shaking and tears were slipping gently down his cheeks. Luke immediately rushed over and allowed Bo to wrap his good arm around his neck, and sighed as Bo nuzzled his head into his neck and sobbed.

"Bo…"

The doctor looked over from his position by the bed, and shook his head gently at Luke.

"Let him cry, he's gonna need it. Better to let it all out than keep this bottled up inside."

Everyone looked over, frowning and confused at the Doctor who braced himself with a large intake of breath and a gentle sigh.

"I'm afraid I have some bad news…"

**Bet y'all are thinkin' there isn't much else that can go wrong for Bo….well remember this is Hazzard County and Duke luck just ain't somethin' that holds out well in this type of situation. Stick around.**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: YEY you all came back! 16 reveiws, I'm so happy! Woo Hoo! lol, anyway thanks for the numerous death threats and the like I received from some people and I'm really really glad you are all enjoying this story. I hope you all realise I hate doing this to Bo as much as you hate reading it being done to him, but it never is done in the series and that ticks me off a little cause they're bound to get hurt sometimes! Anyway, enough ranting from me, enjoy and R&R.**

**TISSUE WARNING: My beta advises for all those who need tissues for weepy scenes you get them now or sometime before the end of the chapter otherwise you are at risk of keyboard flooding. (Her words not mine)**

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"Well I don't know, I asked him to come…shhh! Shhh y'all hush he's comin'!"

Jesse and Daisy pulled into the Duke Farm in the pick-up, neither one having said anything the whole way back from the hospital. They had received a rush call from Cooter, who had told them to meet him back at the farm as soon as possible.

"Uncle Jesse, I don't like leaving Bo like that…especially after what he just got told!"

"Now I know Daisy and neither do I…but we just gotta keep everything the same as it was… and besides, Luke's with him and you know that boy. He can look after Bo, and Enos is there, and even if it is just because Bo's under arrest still, Enos will look after him too."

All Daisy could do was nod, she knew that Jesse was right. Since they had received the terrible news, Bo hadn't uttered a word, just kept staring hollowly out the window of his room. When they had received the call from Cooter, Luke had told them to leave without him so he could stay behind and see if he couldn't talk some sense into Bo and no one doubted his ability to do just that.

Both stepped into the farm house, which was unusually dark. Daisy flipped the switch…

"Surprise!"

Jesse jumped out of his skin when about half of Hazzard County jumped out from their various hiding places around the small house, and Cooter popped up directly in front of him.

"Cooter! What in blazes d'ya think your doin'?"

"Now Unc…Jesse, I know you said you didn't want me to tell no one, but I couldn't just sit by and watch as my best friend's whole lives went down the plug hole cause of some accident."

"Now I…what d'you mean?"

Cooter grinned and blindfolded Jesse and then Daisy, then lead them out to the yard with the party of citizens all following behind. Eventually the group came to a stop and the blindfolds were taken off. For a moment not one of them spoke…until Daisy let out a shriek and flung her arms around Cooter's neck, then went on to kiss every single one of the people that were behind them. Jesse just stood looking at the sight that befell him…his barn stood shining as good as new before him.

He slowly walked forward as everyone watched in silence. Everyone knew that Jesse didn't like taking charity off of nobody, because everyone was so poor themselves in Hazzard. He reached out and touched the closed door, tapping it just to make sure that what he was seeing was completely true. Cooter stepped forward and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"You alright Jesse?"

"Cooter…"

"Yes sir…"

"You can call me Uncle Jesse."

Cooter chuckled and laid a friendly arm around Jesse's shoulder.

"Jesse, this want just me. Everyone here played a part, and they all wanted to come and see your reaction. We all worked night and day to get this back up for ya."

"Well I…I just don't know how to thank you all…"

This was met by a series of surprised outburst by several people stood in the crowd.

"Now Jesse, you and them boys have done enough for us already."

"Too right, it's about time we got the chance to pay you back properly, seein' as neither you nor them accept any money from any of us for the work you do."

"And speakin' of money…"

Two small children wormed their way away from their parent's and stood in front of Uncle Jesse, handing him two small bags before grinning shyly at the old man and running back into the crowd of people. Daisy crossed over to her Uncle and peered inside the bags, before gasping.

"Guys…we can't accept these, there full of money!"

Cooter nodded.

"That's right, enough to make at least 4-5 monthly mortgage payments while your barn gets set up and after the race this Saturday, enough to cover Bo's hospital bill too."

"But Cooter…how…."

"Uh uh, no way, I ain't tellin'. You's just take that and do what you gotta do."

And before the astounded pair could say another word, they were ushered back into the farm house, where the party continued, toasting to the fact that Bo was alive and things were starting to look up…Daisy and Jesse just didn't have the heart to tell them what was really going on with their youngest.

**You would think after all this they could tell us what's goin' on with Bo.**

Luke sighed and looked over to his cousin again, noticing how his eyes flickered from being awake to asleep whenever he looked over. He rubbed his forehead gently, trying to find some way to keep himself calm, but when he looked back to Bo and saw him quickly close his eyes again, something inside of him snapped.

All the pent up worry, anger, fear and relief flowed through him as he pushed himself to his feet and stood directly over Bo, giving his cheek a light tap.

"Bo I know you's awake so stop foolin' around."

Bo opened his eyes and looked surprised up at Luke, who looked thoroughly irritated and, Bo noticed, tired. The tone of voice with which Luke spoke to him, told him that there would be no messing around.

"Right, now I know you's awake, you gonna tell me what's botherin' you, asides from the news you got this mornin'?"

Bo continued to hold Luke's gaze, before looking away again and staring out the window. Luke sighed frustrated and moved away from Bo's bed, heading to where his jacket was slung over the small set of drawers. Luke hated to have to do this to Bo, but it was his last resort.

He had seen people like this before, people who had suffered terrible accidents and withdrawn into themselves until eventually no one could get them back….heck it had damn near happened to him once…He wasn't prepared to lose his cousin that way, not so soon after he had got him back from death's clutches. He turned as he put his jacket on and saw Bo looking worriedly at him. It tore at Luke's heart, but he knew this was something he had to do.

"I'm gonna get the ones who did this to ya Bo. I don't care if it kills me, I'm gonna get 'em. I just want you to know…if I don't make it back…that I love you cuz, always have done and always will do. Your like my baby brother and I'm gonna make sure them guys pay for scaring you silent like this."

He abruptly turned and headed for the door.

"Luke! Please don't go!"

The voice sounded so pitiful and scared that Luke very nearly ran back and took Bo in his arms, but he didn't. He walked slowly back into the room and leant on the doorframe, looking angry.

'Well why not Bo? If they got you so scared that you can't even talk to your own cousin…"

"It wasn't them Luke…"

"Well, if it wasn't them then who was it?"

Bo sighed and looked down at the bedsheets, which Luke took as his cue to walk back over and take his baby cousin's hand.

"Come on Bo, you know you can tell me anythin'. You's always have done ever since you could talk remember, I could never get you to stop your yapping for more than 5 seconds..."

Bo nodded and took a deep, shuddering breath before looking back into Luke's calming blue eyes.

"It's just….I feel so guilty Luke…"

"Why? You ain't done nothin' wrong. The barn and the General want your fault, you know that."

"I know…it ain't that…"

"Well then what?"

Bo's baby blue eyes were now shimmering with tears. Luke squeezed his hand a little tighter; careful of the IV needles still planted there and noticed also that Bo was shaking.

"Luke I….when I was trapped in the General…I...I kept callin' for you….it was so cold and dark and…and it hurt so bad I…."

He choked on the words, heavy sobs wracking his already sore throat and sending spasms of pain through his chest. He felt Luke's strong arms wrap tenderly around his shoulders, and he lent as much as he could into the warm embrace.

Luke knew there was more that Bo needed to say, but didn't have the heart to tell him to continue, partly because the thought of Bo calling out to him in pain, shuddering with cold and barley able to breathe killed him.

"I was so scared Luke…when you didn't show…I was dyin' I know I was…and then I thought of the night you left for the Marine's…I went to bed that night and climbed into yours…and I cried…all night I called out your name, waitin' for your arms to wrap around me….keep me safe…and when they didn't….I felt so alone….I was scared then I would never get to see you again…and I got that same feelin'…"

Silent tears raced down Luke's cheeks and into Bo's honey blonde hair as he held his cousin tighter, the guilty knot in his stomach tightening further as the begs and pleas of reconsideration from a 14 year old Bo rang through his head, and the hope filled letters, muddied and blotched by tears, swam before his eyes. He had to do his service, it was his duty…but a part of him always ached at the thought of how much it had hurt Bo.

"I was scared you left me again Luke! I was scared no one would ever find me and I wouldn't get to say goodbye…"

"Bo…please stop….I'm never gonna leave you like that, never again. Oh god Bo I'm so sorry."

"No…I hated you when you left Luke…and a part of me hated you when I was stuck…a part of me wanted to give up and…make you feel what I felt when you left…I never ever should have thought that, I never wanted to think it…I'm sorry, I really really am…please forgive me Luke…please…"

"Bo, I'll always forgive ya, I can understand you feelin' like that. I just wish you'd have told me sooner is all."

Bo nodded, nuzzling his head into Luke's shirt, breathing in the familiar scent of Luke's aftershave and feeling again the warmth that had soothed and comforted him so often in the past.

"Promise me somethin' Bo."

Bo looked up and saw gentle tears swimming in Luke's eyes that made his heart clench painfully. He never meant to tell Luke any of this, he wanted to just keep it to himself, get everything straightened out in his own head then carry on his life as...well not as noral anymore after what he had been told but...to just carry on.

But there was no backing out, he couldn't just stop talking to Luke now, the warm embrace was too comforting and the tears too heartbreaking to him to ever even consider disobeying Luke.

"Anythin'..."

"Promise me that you ain't gonna get like this again. If you need to talk about somethin' you tell me, please promise me that."

"I promise Luke…..Luke…."

"Yeah Bo."

"Will I…do you believe what the doctor said?"

"About what?"

"'Bout me never…never bein' able to…walk or drive again…"

"No Bo. I ain't never gonna believe that 'cause you and me are Dukes. And as long as we're together, there ain't nothin that can stop us from doin' somethin'. And I say we'll get you back on your feet quicker than that Doctor can blink."

Luke looked down at his cousin resting gently in his arms, all shaking and sobbing laid to rest and a smile that Luke had not seen appear on his face for a week re-appear on his face. It was a genuine smile, one of love trust and confidence that Luke was pleased to see.

He was going to make double damn sure his cousin would feel the ground beneath his feet and the leather of the General's steering wheel gripped in sweaty palms as the car launched itself across a ravine or a pond, or some spectacular feet that no one had ever dared to try again. He would make sure of it because he owed it to Bo to do so, because he had gotten Bo into this mess in the first place and he would stop at nothing to make Bo's life as right as it could and should be, even if it took the rest of his born days.

"Yeah Bo, me and you can do anythin' so long as we have Duke Spirit and each other."

**For those of you findin' it hard to keep up like me…Luke's feelin' guilty 'cause of what happened to Bo 'cause he feels responsible…and now Bo's feelin' guilty for feelin' responsible for draggin' Luke into it…I tell you, I don't like to think what's gonna happen when Bo tells Luke he lied that night…**


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Hey, sorry about the lateness of this chapter. I got struck down with severe writers block where I knew where I wanted to go, but how to get there was a problem...ah well, its here now so I hope you all enjoy and R&R:-)**

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Daisy smiled contentedly as she finished clearing away the remnants of the previous nights party, looking out the window every so often just to check that the barn was really standing good as new in its place. She couldn't help but love Cooter and love living in Hazzard at that moment; anything that happened in Hazzard was noticed by everyone, not just those closest to you and Daisy couldn't think of a better place to live in.

She looked back from the window as she heard soft footsteps behind her and greeted Uncle Jesse good morning as he sat at the head of the table. She placed a warm breakfast in front of him and sat at her place, bowing her head as he started to say grace but had to stop as the phone rang.

"Hello, this is Jesse Duke speaking."

"Hey Uncle Jesse, you said your mornin' prayers yet?"

"Bo! Is that you!"

"Sure is Uncle Jesse."

Jesse smiled as the cheery voice of his youngest charge greeted his ears and he sat gently at the table and leaned in to let Daisy hear it too. The voice that came down the phone, Jesse reflected, sounded a lot more like the Bo they knew and loved, rather than the one they had left staring listlessly out of a hospital window, looking at nothing but a bleak future in the horizon. He knew that Luke and Bo were extremely close, but just how much they affected one another never seemed to cease to amaze.

"How are you talkin' to us, I thought you's wasn't allowed out ya bed."

"Well I managed to persuade the good doctor to bring a phone into my room so's I could talk to my family."

"Well it's good to hear you soundin' so cheery."

"Yeah, Luke's a regular ol' miracle worker ain't he?"

Jesse could hear Luke's deep laugh on the other end of the line and could imagine his oldest ruffling the blond curls that adorned Bo's head.

"I'm mighty glad you called Bo, was there a specific reason?"

"Well…actually….I know this sounds kinda….kinda stupid but…well me and Luke's just got our breakfast here and…well….I was wonderin' if you'd want to say grace for us…I kinda miss it…"

Daisy bit gently on her bottom lip, smiling as Jesse's eyes welled up with tears too.

"O'course that's not stupid Bo…I'd be happy ta."

"Alright Uncle Jesse."

Daisy bowed her head again, the wide smile on her face growing as she heard Luke hiss something at Bo which sounded an awful lot like 'Just 'cause he can't see ya reachin' for ya food, doesn't mean I can't.'

"Dear Lord, we thank thee for these bounteous meals you provide for us and for keepin' Bo safe. Amen."

The three cousin's could be heard repeating the last word and soon they were all tucked into their meals, Bo chattering endlessly to them about some of the pretty nurses he noticed walking by and the fact that hospital rooms were really bleak and boring. Eventually however, the line went silent.

"Bo….Bo ya still there?"

"Uncle Jesse, this here's Luke. The doctor's have just come in to check on him is all."

"Oh right…is he really as ok as he sounds?"

"Well he seems to be. Me and him had some talks last night and he's startin' to handle things pretty well. The whole ringin' and askin' to do grace at breakfast was his idea 'bout everythin' bein' as normal as possible for him."

"And how are you holdin' up?"

"I'm fine."

Jesse frowned as he detected the slight tenseness in Luke's voice, and he knew that he was lying. He had a feeling that the conversation between the pair wasn't exactly terribly productive for the guilty feeling eldest. He looked to Daisy who nodded to confirm what he suspected and was about to say something when a loud 'YEE HAWWW!" erupted down the phone that made Daisy jump.

"Boys? Boys what's goin' on?"

It wasn't too long before Bo's voice was back on the line, sounding like he was close to tears.

"Uncle Jesse! I…I'm comin' home!"

"Wh…Bo what d'ya mean?"

"The doctor's…they just said that there ain't much else too wrong with me and I can come home as long as I promise to rest up a whole lot!"

"But…but you…you had internal injuries and….and broken ribs…"

"Yeah but they said that there want much more they could do here apart from run up and even bigger bill for care I could get at home! Uncle Jesse, I thought you'd be happy!"

"Well I am, I'm real happy for ya Bo, it's just I'm concerned about ya."

"I know but…I mean ain't it great!"

"It sure is Bo, and we can't wait to have you back."

"Thanks I can't wait to get back. Oh here, Luke wants to talk to ya; I gotta go have a shower."

"Alright Bo, we'll be seein' ya later on."

Daisy knew what Uncle Jesse was thinking, and why he wasn't oh so ecstatic about the news because she was thinking exactly the same thing; and apparently so was Luke. After a few minutes of silence he finally came on the line.

"Now Uncle Jesse, I knows what you's gonna say."

"Well what are we gonna do? As soon as Boss and Rosco hear tell of Bo being released they's gonna be onto him like bee's is to honey."

"Exactly, **_if_** they hear tell."

"What d'ya mean if?"

"Well ya see Uncle Jesse, it's like this…"

**It sounds like ol' Lukas has a plan up that checked sleeve o'his. And once again we don't get to find out. Ain't it nice to feel appreciated? Looks like even ol' Enos is in on it too.**

Enos walked into the jail house, keeping a look out for Rosco or Boss, even thought he knew that they would be down at the Boar's Nest at this time for Boss' lunch, and into Boss' office. He closed the door quietly behind him and headed over to the desk, quickly skimming through pages of paper scattered all over the desks before turning to the drawers.

He heard a 'pssst' come from the open window and looked over to see Cooter's face peeking up from behind the bushes. He shook his head and continued his search, yelping slightly as he trapped his fingers.

As soon as Luke had told him what was happening with Bo, Enos was hesitant about helping the Dukes out. He cared for them all like they were family because they had been close friends for so long, and they had helped him out so many times. But the law always came first for him, it was his duty and he pointed out to Luke that by letting Bo go with him knowing would be a breech of his sworn duty.

But, when Luke had pointed out that Bo had been unfairly arrested, and Enos knew he had, Luke had shown him that by placing Bo under arrest he was breaching his sworn duty anyway. So, either way, no matter what he did he was put in the same situation.

**Did y'all catch that?**

And so, Enos now found himself succumbing to Luke's confusing logic and searching Boss Hogg's desk for the details of the two Atlanta thugs he knew that the Boss had on file. He was just trying to frantically remember where he had seen it. He jerked when he heard a car door slam and saw a signal from Cooter.

"Possum on a gumbush! He's back!"

He quickly slammed all the remaining doors shut and headed over to the window when he saw a piece of paper lying on the ground by his foot. He quickly picked it up and glanced at it, moving to put it back on the desk, when he finally registered what it was. Laughing out loud he crammed it into his pocket and climbed quickly out the window as Boss and Rosco entered the office.

Cooter quickly grabbed his wrist and dragged him back to the garage, making sure that he couldn't be seen by Rosco.

"Did ya get the details?"

"Yeah I did, I dunno why Boss kept 'em on the floor though…"

"Don't worry 'bout that, just get them back to Luke so as he can get our buddy out of hospital quicker will ya!"

"Sure thing Cooter, I'm gone!"

With that, Enos sped round to the back of the garage, taking a hidden route back up to Tri County Hospital, feeling immensely proud of himself.

**So Bo's gonna be getting' out of Tri County, Luke's got a plan to get him out safely and Nigel and Ronny are still on the loose…friends, I have a baaaaad feelin' about this…**


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: Hey everyone...all I can say for this chapter is...please don't kill me. Also, me and Elenhen have started writing another story called Dukes in Double Trouble which will be up and posted soon, as the first chapter has already been written. It will be posted on my account, so keep your eyes open and your ears peeled as Cooter would say...i think...shrugs Oh well, like I said please don't kill me for what happens in this chapter, and R&R.**

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Jesse looked anxiously at his watch as he drove down the back road to the farm, driving slowly and carefully down the bumpy track. His fingers tapped nervously at the wheel as the minutes ticked by and the gentle ache in his big toe started to grow. But, he smiled as a hand laid itself gently on his shoulder. 

"Uncle Jesse, you know Luke's plan's always turn out just fine. There's no need to worry so much!"

"I know I know…I just don't like the thought of him puttin' himself and that other cousin o' yours in so much danger. And besides, my big toe is hurtin'..."

The conversation was cut short as the CB crackled into life, and Enos' voice came through.

"This is Deputy Enos Strate callin' the Sheriff! This is an emergency Sheriff!"

"This is Roscoooo P Coltrane readin' you loud and clear, come back."

"Sheriff, the Dukes all just took off from Tri County Hospital! I tried to stop 'em, but they took Bo with 'em. The last I saw, Luke and Bo was headed into Hazzard through Route 36 in a grey sedan on loan from Cooter seein' as the General's still busted up."

"Enos, you dipstick! I told you to keep an eye on them Dukes, Boss Hogg is gonna be furious when he hears this!"

"Well I'm after them Sheriff! I just need some help with a road block is all!"

"I'll be there, I'm gone."

Enos hung up the CB grimly, gripping the steering wheel of his patrol car, praying to god that this plan of Luke's would work.He knew just as well as Luke did that what he had proposed was extremly risky, but Luke was adament it would work, and he trusted Luke just like the rest of the Duke family did. He switched the CB frequency to the private channel known only by the Dukes and the Dukes closest friends just in time to hear Luke's voice crackle into existence.

"Alright, this is goin' good. Now, if we's just stick to the timin' and what we thinks gonna happen does, then there should be no problem."

"Now Luke I want you to be careful, I already nearly lost one of my boys this week I don't want ta lose you both."

"I know Uncle Jesse. Let's get back onto the Hazzard Net."

**I hope I ain't the only one who's confused here…Jesse's on his way back to the farm with I would guess Daisy, Enos and Rosco are headed onto route 36 followin' Luke and Bo in a grey sedan…why do I sense a bit of shuckin' and jivin' goin on here?**

"_That's right; we'll meet you back at the farm in 'bout 20 minutes Uncle Jesse."_

"_Alright, now you boys be careful ya here."_

"_We will, we're gone."_

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Nigel and Ronnie grinned in their hideout they had loaned from Boss. They were more than infuriated that their plan at the hospital hadn't worked and were intent on getting even with the two boys this time around. 

"Route 36 runs just behind here…what say we give them a little…welcome home present."

Ronnie nodded and rose from the table, followed soon by Nigel. They swiftly got into their car as they heard the sound of cars and a siren approaching and barrelled down the road that wound its way down the side of the hill, stopping just behind a set of bushes as the convoy of sedan and squad car tore round the corner.

* * *

"_Come on now fella's, please pull over!"_

"_Sorry Enos no can do. You know Bo's innocent and so do I, even if no one else believes it!"_

Luke's foot pressed harder on the accelerator, speeding round the corner, looking out for Rosco. He grinned as the familiar cop car came the other way and checked back to make sure Enos was still with him when he felt a tug on his sleeve and a yell from the other person riding with him. He looked back just in time to see a car pull out sharply in front of him, blocking Rosco from getting to him and from him getting past.

With no time to break when he was going at such a top speed, he pulled the car into a sharp left turn, which sent the car swerving off down the side of the hill. He wrenched his door open and tumbled out, rolling slightly down the embankment but quickly getting to his feet as the car tumbled down to the bottom and exploded into flames, throwing him back to the floor.

**This don't look too good now do it…folks, I think you just seen a piece of history in the makin'…when one of Luke Duke's plans fell from beneath him…and I tell you, I don't think I wanna see the outcome of this.**

Enos and Rosco pulled up quickly, just in time to see the car pull away and high tail it back where it had come from and Luke stagger back to his feet and look around frantically.

"Possum on a gumbush…"

Enos ran quickly to Luke who had started to scrabble down to the flaming wreckage. He grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

"Luke no!"

"Bo…I gotta find Bo, he was with me! Where is he, can you see him?"

Rosco looked around desperately, searching all the places that he could see where Bo might've leapt to…but found nothing at every site. He hurried over to Enos, helping him to pull Luke gently away from the wreckage, who was still screaming at the top of his lungs for his youngest cousin.

"Luke…come on now…you can't go down there."

"Lemme go, I have to find him! BO! He only just came back to us; I ain't lettin' him go again! BO!"

"He's….Bo's gone Luke….he couldn't have survived that…"

"No Rosco…No I don't believe it! I won't! BO! Come on cousin please! BO….BO….BO…."

Luke fell limply to the ground as his screams grew fainter, wrenching his arms free of the lawmen's grips. Sobs wracked his usually strong frame as he crumpled to his knees, head held in his hands. He heard sniffs behind him and he looked up slightly to see tears slipping down the sheriff's cheeks, Enos standing with his hat over his chest, his head bowed.

That was the site Daisy was greeted with as she pulled up, out of breath, in Dixie. She took a moment to survey the carnage that befell her and hurried down to where a figure was slumped in the tall grass. She wrapped loving arms gently around Luke's shoulder's, tears making tracks down her cheeks as she gently helped him to his feet and guided him back up the hill, Rosco and Enos soon following suit.

As he climbed into Dixie, his vision too obscured with tears to see properly, he felt a hand clamp itself firmly on his shoulder. He looked up to see a shimmering figure of Rosco looking at him apologetically.

"I…I know Bo didn't do nothin' wrong Luke…I'm…I'm real sorry…"

"S'alright Rosco…we always knew you's never wind up gettin' us….it was more than likely to be the mountains…."

"I'll…I'll stay here and…and clear up…see if I can't find…"

"Would…would ya come back to the farm…I can't…I can't repeat this to Uncle Jesse…I can't…"

But again his words were cut by deep, choking sobs that caused the tears to fall even faster down his tanned cheeks. Rosco climbed gently into the back of Dixie, and murmured something to Enos, who nodded and headed back down to the wreckage to help the fire department put the blaze out and to start searching for any remains.

Meanwhile, Ronnie and Nigel surveyed their handiwork from the hidden hideout that over looked the accident scene, grinning wildly.

"Ronnie, I think we really got him this time!"

"Well what about the other one, he got out!"

"That don't matter, he's too grief stricken to try and search us out now!"

"But what happens when he decides to come lookin' for us? Then we take care o'him just like we took care of this guy. Now come on, let's get plannin' this bank raid so we's can get out of this dump."

**Now I told y'all I had a baaaaad feelin' bout this. Who was smart enough to start plannin' Bo's funeral a couple o'chapters back, cause I think we's gonna be needin' those plans right 'bout now.**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Now why don't any of you believe I killed Bo! I can do it you know and I'm gonna prove it in this chapter! Go on, take a read and see for yourself! Also, I've created my own Dukes of Hazzard Role Play site if anyone wants to join. Its the second Link in my profile. All characters avaliable at the moment except Bo...because he's mine...yeah so please enjoy the chapter and R&R.**

* * *

The old Duke patriarch stood silently in the middle of the kitchen, the last two children he had left sitting silently, in shock, before him and Sheriff Rosco P Coltrane standing in the corner by the door, telling him about the fiery demise of his youngest charge. 

Beauregard James Duke, the fun-loving trouble-prone member of the Duke Family was gone, leaving behind him nothing but turmoil and anguish. Uncle Jesse barley even registered what Rosco was saying, until the very end of Rosco's speech.

"…so you see Jesse, if these boy's weren't runnin' from us in the first place, and handed themselves over good and proper, we would…Bo would still…"

He looked ashamed down at his feet, fully expecting to get an earful from both Jesse and Luke at his words, but was surprised to find Luke's head resting in his folded arms on the table, his shoulders shaking as he cried. Daisy had her arms wrapped protectively around him and Jesse laid a gentle hand on his back.

"We know Rosco…we all knew that someday, somethin' was goin' to happen if they kept runnin' away from you's…just…hard to believe that he's gone…"

"Well I saw it Jesse, I saw the car go over and explode, and then the only one left was Luke…"

Jesse nodded slowly, sinking into his seat at the table, hands clasped in front of him.

After a few minutes of silence in the kitchen, Jesse finally spoke.

"Well…I guess this was his own fault…if he'd a just gave in like I told him to…"

**Folks, if Rosco wasn't so blinded by sadness, he would notice that there is something wrong here….have y'all spotted it yet?**

At this Luke's head flew off the table and burning eyes met directly with Jesse's. Rosco flinched at the blazing expression that adorned the young man's face, but Jesse barley even batted an eyelid.

"Uncle Jesse how could you say that! You know as well as I do that Bo was innocent!"

"Now Luke, we ain't got no proof of that."

"But Uncle Jesse! W – "

"There's no buts about it Luke! It's the truth! There is no evidence to suggest that Bo didn't do this himself!"

Now it was Daisy's turn to look horrified at what her Uncle was suggesting.

"Uncle Jesse please! Bo would never – "

"We can never tell what Bo is thinkin' of Daisy!"

"He would never do this to us!"

Rosco could do nothing but stand helplessly in the corner as argument broke out at the Duke table, the two cousins desperately trying to fight for their lost one, trying to cling to the last piece of Bo that they could…the fact that Bo was a good ol' boy who loved and respected his family.

"Well then, let's just ask Rosco about this shall we! If Rosco can prove that there is evidence to suggest Bo didn't do this, then I'll believe ya!"

All eyes at the table turned to Rosco, who fingered his hat nervously. Boss had told him that under no circumstances must the truth about the 'accident' be told to anyone, especially not the Dukes. But withholding this information and letting a man's reputation, dead or not, come crashing down around his family's ears was something that Rosco just couldn't do, whether it was the reputation of a Duke or not.

"I…urm…Jesse I…I have something to tell ya…"

**And so Rosco proceeded to spill the beans on Boss Hogg's plans, not leavin' any detail that he knew out…friends and neighbours I smell somethin' fishy goin' on round here, and it ain't Boss Hogg's lunch neither….he hates fish.**

As Rosco stuttered and stammered into silence, Luke's head returned to his folded arms and Jesse sat back in his chair, studying Rosco as he fidgeted nervously. Rosco knew there were a million things that Jesse wanted to yell at him at that moment and just couldn't figure out why he wasn't.

He jumped as, without warning, Luke rose sharply from his seat and headed over to the CB, knocking a small ornament off the table it stood on as he wrenched the handset into his hand. Rosco noticed his eyes were still red and bloodshot…but there was no evidence of any fresh tear tracks.

"This is Lost Sheep 1 calling Crazy Cooter, you got your ears on, come back."

"This here's Craaaaaaazy Cooter comin right back at ya Lost Sheep."

"Has the home team heard the score?"

"They got the score and are raring to go."

"That's great Cooter, thanks. We'll be getting' back ta ya real soon."

"No problem Buddy Roe, y'all take care. I'm gone."

With that, the handset was placed gently back in its place and Luke turned to lean against the table, folding his arms and looking down at the floor. Uncle Jesse and Daisy were still seated at the table, not at all surprised by Luke and Cooter's sudden, confusing conversation. Rosco was looking back and forth between them, placing his hat back on his head, waiting for some sort of an explanation. When he didn't get one, he opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by someone yelling from down the hall.

"Hey Luke!"

Luke turned his head slightly to half look over his shoulder as he called back.

"Yeah I'm here."

"Could you get me a glass of water and some painkillers?"

"Ah yeah, sorry I forgot about those."

Without another word, Luke crossed to the sink, filling a glass with water and pulling the bottle of painkillers from the top of the kitchen cupboard. He snuck a glance and smirked slightly at Rosco's pale face and bewildered expression.

"D...d…d…guh…uh….Did I just…hear what I….what I thought I heard?"

Jesse and Daisy looked up from the table at the startled sheriff, frowning.

"Well Rosco, that depends on what ya heard."

"From the boy's bedroom….I heard…I heard…."

Luke turned from the sink, the glass of water in his hand and a couple of painkillers clutched in the other.

"Well why don't you come take a look and see if it's what you thought you heard."

With that Luke crossed the kitchen and headed towards his and Bo's room, followed by a very hesitant Rosco. He strode into the room and crossed over to his youngest cousin's bed, placing the glass of water on the nightstand before sitting on the edge of the bed.

Rosco stood in the doorway, frozen, his face drained of all colour. He watched as Luke slipped his arm underneath the man's shoulders and helped him into a sitting position against the bed head, pressing two small tablets into the hand whose arm wasn't caked in plaster from the elbow down, and holding the glass to his mouth as he swallowed them down with some water.

He backed slightly out of the room as the young man's face turned to look at him and the bright, cheeky grin that was trademark of his character shone at him, his cheery words vibrating off the walls.

"What's a matter Rosco, you look like you's seen a ghost."

The boys watched as Rosco's back pressed firmly against the wall, looking worse and worse every minute. Luke moved to go and grab Rosco's arm before he fell to the ground, but Uncle Jesse had appeared instead and motioned for Luke to stay put.

"Come on Rosco, lets go outside and git some fresh air."

As soon as they heard the front door shut, Luke and Bo erupted into laughter.

"Did you see his face!"

"I know, I know. That was better than the last time we 'died'."

"I have to say you really outdid yourself this time cuz. That was one of the best plans you's ever come up with!"

"Why thank you Bo but it ain't over yet."

"Did Cooter record Rosco's confession?"

"Yep, and the whole of Hazzard County, exceptin' Boss and hopefully those two guys, heard it over the CB."

"I can't believe Rosco didn't see the CB was runnin'."

"Well we're dang lucky he didn't."

"Too right."

"Hey Bo…"

"Yeah."

"It's good to have you back home cousin."

Bo smiled up at Luke, taking his hand in his free one and squeezing it gently.

"It's good to be back….just do me a favour."

"What's that?"

"Make sure you come back…these two guys are dangerous, you saw….well you can see what they did to me. They're a couple of no good sidewinders and will use every trick in the book."

"I know cousin, don't worry. I promise I'll come back."

"Well if you promise then its dang near a guarantee ain't it."

"As good as Cousin."

With that, Luke ruffled Bo's bouncy golden curls and rose from the bed, heading towards the door.

"Hey Luke."

"Yeah."

"Do me a favour."

"I thought me comin' back alive was enough?"

"Well that's great but…could you get me a real long stick?"

"What d'ya want a long stick for?"

"My arm and leg are itchin' like crazy and I can't scratch it through the cast."

Luke laughed and headed back out to the front room, grinning as he saw through the kitchen window, Rosco on the porch seat trying to regain his composure as Uncle Jesse briefly explained to him what had really happened and how it was that Bo was still alive. Now all they had to work on was getting Rosco to help out with the next stage of the plan.

He gently wet a small flannel that was waiting for him on the table with ice cold water and held it firmly over his eyes for a minute, sighing as the burning that pricked at them died down. After a moment he dropped the flannel over the radiator, dropping the small canister of pepper spray that had been in his pocket into the bin.

He crossed over to the phone as Jesse gave him a quick thumbs up through the window and lifted the small piece of paper from its place in his pocket. With trembling fingers he dialled the number, casting a quick glance back to the room where his youngest cousin was recovering, praying to god that he hadn't just made a promise he couldn't keep.

* * *

**A/N 2: Alright, i'm sorry I just couldn't do it! Bo is so cute and I am so weak when he pulls those puppy dog eyes one me. But, you ain't gonna find out how they managed to pull that one off. I suggest if you really are dying to know now you got a few more details, you go back and re read chapter 17 and see if you can figure out what happened. Congrats to GreyWolf who figured this out straight away. If you need more hints, looking at his/her reveiw for the previous chapter should help. Keep it 'tween the ditches now.**


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: Hey all, sorry for the lateness of this chapter but things have been happening at home that have gotten in the way of fan fic wiritng, I promise i'll update quicker for the next chapter. :-) As always please R&R and enjoy!**

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"_Alright now, Cooter make sure you wait for my signal, no matter what happens here you and everyone else waits, got it?"_

"_Alright Buddy Roe, but you be careful right. Having Bo in Tri County was bad enough."_

"_I know…just keep a close eye and ear out."_

"_I'll keep my ears peeled and my eyes open. I'm gone."_

Tears pricked softly at Bo's eyes as he lay on the couch of the living room; listening to the CB he requested Uncle Jesse leave on for him. He had tried earlier to wiggle the toes of his right foot, the one that wasn't covered with a layer of white, but the realization that he really couldn't move anything below his waist hit him.

In the hospital it had sounded so crazy that he didn't really believe it, he was sure that the awful sensation of not being able to feel his legs was just a side effect of the drugs they had been giving him. When the doctor had told him that that feeling may be permanent, he still couldn't believe it. At first he had asked if it was just a really cruel joke. Even when he was sobbing into the safety of the soft folds in Luke's blue checked shirt he still couldn't get his head round that fact.

But now that he had time to himself, now that he realised exactly how much danger Luke was putting himself in to get back at the two men who had done this, he felt truly vulnerable and helpless. He needed Luke to be able to get through this; Luke had promised that he would return and that he would get Bo back on his feet again. He trusted Luke with his life…he just didn't trust Luke with his own and as he listened again to the plan crackling over the private frequency on the CB, his heart skipped beats and his mouth ran dry…and an overwhelming sense of dread washed over him.

Luke stood in the middle of the forest clearing, leaning on Dixie as every snap of a twig sent jolts of surprise coursing through his spine and every rustle of leaves caused the hairs on the back of his neck to stand on end. He glanced at his watch and reached over to flip the CB channel to the Hazzard net, pressing the button of the handset and lodging it firmly between the gear stick and the edge of the seat, the speaker facing outwards so it could pick up the conversation.

He jumped as the sound of approaching footsteps and hushed voices came though the trees and leant casually against Dixie's hood as Ronnie and Nigel stepped into view. The smirk on the two men's faces was enough to make Luke's blood boil, even thought he kept his calm and serious composure. He stepped slightly away from the car, hands curled into fists at his side.

Nigel and Ronny carried on walking towards Luke, seeing he wasn't armed with anything, not even the trademark pocket knife that they had seen both him and Bo wearing before. They smirked as they saw his hands clench into fists and stopped just a little way away from him.

"Well, well, well. Luke Duke. We wondered how long it'd be before you came running to us to end your life just like we ended your dear cousin's."

The muscles along Luke's jawline tightened at the mention of Bo. Of course, he knew that Bo wasn't really dead, but thinking how close these men had actually come to killing him, seeing the mental images of Bo lying in that hospital bed hooked up to god knows how many machines made his whole body tense and shake with emotion that he rarely ever let anyone see.

"Don't you dare talk about him."

"Oooo, struck quite a nerve there didn't we hayseed."

Ronnie's taunting voice pounded along Luke's fraying nerves and the two men delighted in seeing the man trying to compose himself. They had no idea why Luke had asked them to meet him, they could only guess that he wanted his revenge as was normal with the jobs that they did. It wasn't uncommon, and they had dealt with it many a time before.

Nigel took a few more steps towards him, still wearing the same sickening smirk.

"O'course, you should a realised that once you'd seen our faces, we had to get you too. It was a very foolish thing ta do, lookin' for revenge."

Luke tensed further as Nigel drew the handgun from its holster at his side and slowly raised his hands in the air.

"Now…now come on I mean…when did I see your faces?"

Now it was Ronnie's turn to join in the fun, withdrawing his handgun and stepping towards the other side of Luke.

"Well sure you remember. In the hospital when you foiled our second attempt to put your cousin out of his misery."

Luke felt his back press against Dixie's hood and swallowed the lump that had risen in his throat, looking firmly and defiantly at the two men that now stood either side of him.

"Well yeah but…but I didn't really see your faces I mean…I's too concerned 'bout Bo and gettin' you off a him…"

"One way or another hayseed, you seen our faces now…"

Luke flinched slightly as the click of the two guns cocking rang through the silence and the barrel of one pressed against his left temple, while the other dug into his side.

"And we just can't let you go."

"Look fella's….would you just at least…let me say my last words…you gotta honour that rule don't ya…"

"No we don't…but we'll humour ya, considering we didn't let ya cousin before we done run him off the road."

**Folks that were the dumbest thing they's could ever let Luke do…just watch and see.**

"YYYYYEEEEEEEEE HAAAAAAWWWWW!"

The rebel yell vibrated round the trees, sending flocks of birds scattering from their nests and the commotion of animals scurrying through the trees. Luke took the few moments that Ronnie and Nigel were startled to bash the guns out of their hands and send a left hook cracking along one's jawline and a sharp right jab to the other's stomach.

Kicking the guns away into the tall grass, Luke yet out another rebel yell before being tackled and pinned to the ground, the cold metal of a knife pressed against his throat. He swallowed gently as he looked up at Nigel, whose jaw was rapidly turning a nasty shade of red, defiant as always as Ronnie pulled him to his feet and pinned him up against a tree.

"That was a big mistake. I could've made this real quick and painless for ya, but now that you ticked me off, I'm gonna get rid o'you real slow."

Luke cried out as the edge of the blade sunk into the skin just underneath the left side of his jaw, and started its slow and painful tear across his throat.

"Hey y'all! I suggest you let him go before I do something you's gonna regret."

Nigel and Ronny turned to see Daisy striding out the woods, arms folded across her chest, smiling. Not that they noticed that of course, they were too mesmerized by the long legs that were making those strides which protruded from a short pair of denim shorts.

However, mesmerized as they were, neither of them released the hold they had on Luke and Ronnie was just able, after a couple of moments gaping, to finally breathe out a couple of sentences.

"Now…what's a pretty young lass like you doing out here?"

Daisy flashed them the sweet innocent smile that Luke smirked at when he saw it. Anyone who knew Daisy would take that as a normal friendly smile that could melt the hearts of anyone who looked her way. But, the people who REALLY knew Daisy would be gone about 20 miles and further by this time.

"I was just out walkin' with a couple o'friends of mine."

Nigel and Ronnie exchanged worried glances, still never relenting on their holds on Luke, the knife that was held against his throat still lodged painfully in the wound that it had been making.

"F…friends?"

"Yeah. You wanna meet 'em? Hey Uncle Jesse, Cooter, come on out here."

Luke grinned as Cooter and Uncle Jesse stepped out from the bushes, Jesse brandishing his shotgun. But the smile soon changed to a wince and gasp of pain as the knife moved slightly more and the warm trickle of blood he could feel winding its way down his neck quickened.

"Now I don't know what game you's is playin', but if any of you makes one more move then this guy'll be dead on the floor before you even know it."

Cooter laughed and shook his head.

"I don't think you's in much position to be makin' the rules."

"And why….not…."

But there was no point in him finishing the sentence as the sound of multiple guns cocking sounded from all around the clearing and sure enough, farmer after farmer stepped out from the shadows as well as Enos and Rosco, each pointing loaded guns at the two men. Eventually, the knife slipped sharply away from Luke's neck and the holds were released, allowing him to stumble forward to Daisy's waiting arms.

"Alright you two just…FREEZE."

Instinctively, Luke started to weakly raise his hands, the rapid loss of blood making his head swim and his thoughts cloud. As Rosco walked past Luke, he gently lowered his arms for him.

"N….Not you Luke….s'them I'm after this time. Enos! Let's cuff 'em and stuff 'em."

Luke watched with grim satisfaction as Ronnie and Nigel were cuffed by Enos and Rosco and everyone cheered as the pair were loaded into the back of the police cars and driven away.

"Luke you did it! You got them!"

"Y…yeah Daisy…"

He leant weakly against Dixie as she turned to fling her arms around Cooter, and pried the CB handle out from its place between the seat and gear stick.

"Hey Cooter, did you get all that on tape?"

"Sure did buddy roe, all we got to do is take it to Boss in the mornin' to prove Bo's innocence and then let the state police have it to put them two away for good."

Luke smiled and flipped the frequency to the private channel where he knew Bo would be listening, anxiously waiting for an update.

"Hey Bo, this here's Luke…we're makin' our way back to the farm. We got 'em good cousin…we got 'em….real….real good…"

"LUKE!"

Bo screamed at the CB in the kitchen. As soon as Luke had started to speak Bo knew there was something seriously wrong. Luke's voice was weak and trembling and the inability to be able to string sentences together properly did not go unnoticed. When Bo heard no more after Luke's voice trailed off and he briefly heard Daisy's cry, he threw the magazine he had been reading at the wall in anger and fear, yelling to no one in particular.

"Lukas Kevin Duke! You better get back to this farm house and keep your promise to me or I'll never forgive you for this! Never!"


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Well sorry to spring this on you guys, but this is the final chapter to Crossin' the Line. Can I say its been a pleasure writing for you all, and I have loved reading all the wonderful reveiws you've given me. I am considering doing another story that charts Bo's progress after the events that happened here, because there is a lot of things that Bo has to get over still, just let me know if you would like me to in the reveiws.**

**I also apologies for the lateness of the chapter, life gets in the way sometimes which is a damn shame. Remember to read the new story on my account which is being co-written with the wonderful Elenhin. Also, if you have a Dukes of Hazzard idea that you would like me to write, just ****drop me a PM and i'll see what I can do about it. :-)**

**Take care now everyone, read and reveiw and Keep it 'tween the ditches ya hear?**

**Love always, Anakin's Girl xxx**

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The first thing Luke registered as he opened his eyes was the pain that shot through the left side of his neck. He groaned slightly and squeezed his eyes shut again before relaxing as it died away and he finally got to register where he was. He opened his eyes again and smiled as he saw the sunlight entering through the familiar bedroom window and the sight of those golden rays bouncing off a mop of honey blond curls that lay on the side of his bed beside a hand that was firmly clenched around his, a plaster cast clad arm resting lightly on a pillow to the other side of the head.

Sighing, Luke rubbed his eyes with his free hand, reaching down slightly to tenderly run his fingers over a large patch of bandage that lay over the wound on his neck before laying a hand on his younger cousin's head, stroking his hair tenderly, stirring him from sleep.

He watched as Bo's bright blue eyes met his blearily and he smiled as his cousin blinked a couple of times to clear his vision, before his face broke into a wide, relieved grin.

"Luke!"

The grin was infectious and Luke couldn't help but smile wider as the sparkle that had been absent from Bo's eyes returned

"Hey Bo."

"Good Lord Luke you scared the heck outta me last night….when you just cut off from the CB….and then Cooter carried ya in all limp and pale with blood drippin' everywhere…."

Luke noticed that Bo was trembling despite the smile that adorned his face and was quick to put a claming hand on his younger cousin's shoulder.

"Bo…I promised ya I'd come back ta ya didn't I?"

"Well yeah…."

"Have I ever broken a promise to ya?"

"No…"

"And I ain't about to start 'cause of two out of county bullies who think they can near take my cousin's life away from me and get away with it."

Bo smiled tearfully at him and reached to Luke with his good arm, which Luke immediately knew meant Bo wanted a hug. He sat up, wrapping both his arms round the young man's shoulders and holding him tightly.

"S'alright Bo. I'm back and I'm alright….it's just a scratch. It'll heal in no time."

"I didn't know scratches needed stitches."

Luke had to laugh at Bo's quick sarcasm, even though it was still worry filled and tense.

"Alright so it's a little more than a scratch but…Bo will ya look at me please…"

Bo lifted his gaze from the bed sheet to meet the soft, yet firm, eyes of his older cousin.

"Bo, I'm sittin' right here with ya. I'm jokin around; heck I could even get outta bed if I wanted ta. Truth be told I's just stayin' in-between these sheets cause its warm."

Bo couldn't help but smile and laugh a little. Ever since Luke had been brought back to the farm, Bo had made Uncle Jesse let him stick right by his older cousin's side. The unbearable feeling of helplessness at not being able to do a single thing to help Luke when Luke had been so eager and willing to drop everything at a moments notice to help Bo when he was injured was something that Bo just couldn't accept, something that made him feel so worthless.

Luke was about to say more when he noticed the downcast expression return rapidly to his usually happy-go-lucky cousin's face, but was cut off when Cooter, Uncle Jesse and Daisy stepped quietly into the room, that quiet soon broken by a small squeal of excitement from Daisy.

"Luke! You're awake!"

"I never would have noticed."

"Luke!"

She playfully slapped his arm before throwing her arms round his waist and leaning her head happily on his shoulder.

"Did y'all go and see Boss?"

Jesse and Cooter both nodded from the doorway.

"It want just us 3 though buddy roe, practically the whole of Hazzard tried to git into his office to demand that he listen to the tapes and admit the whole thing. Then after he listened to them and we threatened to take the ones with his bein' involved to state police, he 'offered' to pay for the whole charge of Bo's hospital care and he won't be collectin' any mortgage payments from ya for at least 3 months."

Jesse laughed as he recalled to the group again how J.D's face had turned redder and redder as he signed away his money, knowing that this was more of a punishment than jail could ever be to the greedy commissioner. Soon enough everyone was laughing along with Cooter's imitation of Boss….well nearly everyone.

Bo still sat looking at his family, knowing that they were trying to act as if everything would be able to get back to normal now. But he knew better; he knew that normal was not something that would be associated with him for a long time. Normal was the life he used to lead, when him and Luke would do everything together….now it would just be Luke driving to get the crops for Uncle Jesse, or ploughing the back fields….or doing most of the chores around the house. He wouldn't be able to do much of anything anymore and it pained him.

But somehow, as Luke touched his face gently and wiped away the lone tear that had slipped down his cheek, he got the feeling that everything would be alright. Soon enough, Luke's arms were wrapped firmly round his cousin's shoulders, followed by Daisy's and then Uncle Jesse's….and after much yelling and persuading, Cooter's. Bo couldn't help but start to smile as the hug got tighter as more arms wrapped around him.

What was he thinking? Of course he'd be alright; of course things would get back to normal for him. With his family by his side, and the best friends anyone could ever even hope for, there wasn't anything he couldn't do. Knowing Cooter, if Bo wanted to drive again, he'd create a device for him to be able to. Knowing Uncle Jesse, if Bo wanted to do chores, then all Bo had to do was ask and Uncle Jesse would find something. Knowing Daisy, if he needed some girls to cheer him up, Daisy would have her little phone book out and calling everyone she knew. Knowing Luke….if Bo wanted someone to be right there beside him through thick and thin, wanted someone to help him try and get back to his feet and cry on when it didn't work, wanted someone to make things as normal as possible for him….well Luke would be there.

"Hey y'all, c'mon you's got to get outside, I got a surprise for you both."

Bo and Luke looked up in surprise at Cooter who was suddenly bounding towards the doorway, followed by Daisy and Uncle Jesse, who also wore huge grins. Luke gently slid himself to his feet, at first finding it hard to balance himself, but soon finding his footing. He pulled on his jeans and customary blue plaid shirt, before gently helping Bo into the wheelchair Cooter had brought round from Doc Appleby's.

"Hey Bo….I got a job fer us to do…"

"What's that Luke?"

"What d'ya say we take this thing over to Cooter's, paint it orange, stick the confed' flag on the seat and rename it the mini General. Then we's can race the two."

Bo had to laugh out loud with Luke at that, even though he could feel the little pang of guilt still hidden inside him. He hadn't heard hide nor hear of the General's condition since the accident.

He shielded his eyes against the glare of the sun as Luke gently pushed him outside and they followed their family, gasping as the saw what they were headed to.

"Luke….is that what…."

"It is….but how…I mean….who…when?"

Uncle Jesse, Daisy and Cooter all laughed, with Uncle Jesse finally answering.

"It's been there since before you boys got home. Guess you's were too wrapped up in that scheme o'Luke's ta notice."

Bo motioned for Luke to push him forward so he could rap his knuckles against the barn wall, staring wide eyed with disbelief as Daisy and Jesse had also done

"But how…how did it get…?"

"To cut a long story short buddy roe, the people of Hazzard are eternally grateful fer all yer help over the years, and this is just one of the ways they could pay ya back."

Luke put on a fake pout and folded his arms.

"Ah dang, there goes my excuse for not ploughing the back forty this month!"

Luke grinned as he heard Bo laugh, a laugh that he had not heard in ages. It was a laugh that sounded natural, relaxed and lasted more than a few seconds. Eventually however, he managed to stop laughing to look over to Cooter.

"Now, it's all good and well the barn's back, but the question is did you remember our hiding spot in there?"

Cooter laughed and opened the door.

"Why don't ya see fer yerself?"

Luke grinned and pushed his cousin through the open door, fumbling for the light. He finally found it about a good distance away from where it had usually been.

"Hey Cooter, why'd you go put the light a mile away from the barn door?"

When he got no reply from anybody, he turned round to see Bo sitting wide eyed in his wheelchair looking at something in front of him, Daisy and Uncle Jesse both wearing similar expressions. Luke couldn't immediately see what it was, his vision obscured by several bales of hay.

"Bo, Uncle Jesse, Daisy? What's the ma-"

But as he rounded the corner, he didn't need an explanation. There, sitting in the middle of the barn, was the member of the family that each of them had missed, a member of the family that they thought they would not see again for a very long time. And yet here he was, sitting in all his glory looking like nothing had ever happened. did you, do this?"

"Well, it took me a couple of sleepless days and nights after the accident, but I've had him done since the barn was up and raised."

Daisy moved forward and pushed Bo more towards the General Lee. Normally he would be able to do this himself, but until his arm was taken out of plaster, he couldn't do it with one hand alone.

He reached out and gently ran his hand along the bright orange hood, swallowing back tears as he remembered how mangled it had been; now it looked as good as ever. He was brought round to the driver's side and he gently leant in the window to see the dash and steering wheel all back in its right place. He felt around with his good arm until he found what he was looking for. Everyone jumped and laughed in surprise as the first 12 notes of Dixie rang through the stunned silence that had occupied the barn.

Bo let out a joyous 'Yeeee Hawww' and soon found Luke's arms wrapped around his neck. The General Lee was back, the barn was back, his whole life was starting to get back on track. And he realised, as the 5 people in the barn all celebrated the General Lee's return, that as long as he had friends like Cooter and his family, no matter how many times his enemy's crossed the line, the trust, love and faith they all had in him would never die, and they would do anything to make sure he was safe and he was protected.

They loved him, and he loved them. So he had lost the use of his legs, but it wasn't the end of his world, not when his family was the whole world he had.

**Don't happy endin's just give ya a warm fuzzy feelin' inside? Lucky fer us, in Hazzard County, the endin's are never anythin' but. Come back real soon, ya hear?**


End file.
